By Amanda Raymond
amanda.raymond@salisburypost.com

GRANITE QUARRY — What started out as a mobile tent has now become a storefront business in Granite Quarry.

Tishia Mowery, a licensed cosmetologist for eight years, has opened Tan Lines Custom Spray Tanning at 130 S. Salisbury GQ Ave.

Mowery has been spray tanning others for seven years and has been getting spray tans herself for eight years.

Getting those spray tans gave her the idea to start her own spray tanning business. She started by traveling with a mobile pop-up tent to spray tan clients. She got a lot of her business by posting before and after pictures on social media.

Mowery said she was getting 20 to 30 clients a week.

Now that she has a storefront, she has stuck with the same concept. Along with a private area for spray tanning, the store has a selfie station with fun masks and speech bubbles for clients to take before and after pictures.

She also still does mobile spray tanning for parties, and offers a special deal to spray tan the host for free when they host a party with five friends.

Mowery said when she first started spray tanning clients in 2010, spray tanning was not as popular.

“Everyone was getting orange-colored. So people weren’t that into it,” she said.

Now since tanning solutions have gotten better, Mowery said people are more willing to get spray tanned.

Mowery tests her solutions on herself to see how they look and how long it take for them to fade.

She said spray tanning is a safer and faster alternative to tanning beds with most sessions taking 15 minutes for a tan that lasts between seven and 10 days. Mowery also said spray tanning is a good option for teenagers who are too young for tanning beds.

Mowery sells homemade sugar scrubs for clients to exfoliate their skin before their next spray tan. Once the client exfoliates their skin, they can get sprayed again right away.

“So it’s possible to keep a safe tan year-round,” Mowery said.

Mowery said she wanted to open the storefront to offer clients a safe, comfortable place to get spray tans, and so far, clients have enjoyed the experience.

She said one customer told her, “This is the best spray tan I’ve ever had.”

For more information, contact Tan Lines Custom Spray Tanning at 704-390-4886.

Contact reporter Amanda Raymond at 704-797-4222.