TWO local couples have brought a touch of Magic to the Manchester area.

Partners Mick Mander and Gabrielle Stirling and co-partners Jason Taylor and Nicola Ware plunged their life savings into a nationwide Magic Tan distributorship.

They now have their very own studio in Bury New Road, Whitefield, trading as Salon Unique, and are basking in the warm glow of success.

When the foursome decided to invest in the business just over a year ago, it was an unknown product in Europe. But after travelling to the USA and trying Magic Tan for themselves, they were immediately hooked and knew they were on to something amazing.

Marketing director Gabrielle said: "We knew that if we could bring this technology back to the UK, people would love the opportunity to get a streak-free, natural looking tan in less than a minute."

Since launching the distributorship in the UK in January 2003, Magic Tan has more than 20 exclusively appointed salons around the country with Salon Unique in Whitefield being the latest to open.

The four partners say one of the major benefits of Magic Tan is that it does not expose the customer to potentially harmful UV-rays. The booth is totally private and the whole process takes less than a minute.

The leap of faith has paid off for the two couples and they are looking forward to a sunny future.