Business Notes VENDING MACHINES

Sunbathers are concerned about protecting their skin these days, but nobody likes to handle greasy, gritty suntan-lotion bottles. One entrepreneur's answer is Sun Center, a vending machine that dispenses tanning oil with a spray applicator. A customer activates the spritzer by depositing 50 cents. A hand-held nozzle then emits a light mist for 40 seconds, generally enough to cover those hard-to-reach places.

Sun Center was invented by Charles King of Memphis, who put the first few machines on beaches last August. This year he expects to distribute 500 of the devices along beaches and at swimming pools. "The sunscreen industry is on the cusp of a major boom," he predicts. If so, sunbathers will need bikinis with coin pockets in them.