$17 Billion Med Spas Industry Is Booming

November 13, 2023

Marketdata publishes new market study: “The U.S. Medical Spas Industry”

The U.S. medical spas industry has more than tripled in size (revenues) since 2012, and was worth $17.5 billion in 2022. The Covid-19 pandemic actually boosted this business, as consumers in Zoom meetings viewed their facial faults and decided to correct them. After weeding out some poorly managed operators in 2020, business boomed in 2021. Fully 17% of the total med spas in existence were ones started as recently as 2021.

The market is fueled by ongoing laser machine technology, a broader customer base, private equity investment, an aging of the U.S. population, a broader range of safe and effective treatments, and lower costs per procedure. This presents a strong growth outlook over the next five years.

Some findings of this report:

Industry Size… Marketdata estimates that revenues of the 8,800 U.S. medical spas reached $17.5 billion in 2022. Sales are forecast to grow 9.8% per year to 2027 as more med spas open.

Growth markets include: laser hair removal, tattoo removal, and the facial injectables markets, all of which are minimally penetrated currently. For example, 19.8 million Americans want to remove their tattoos (at an average cost of $1,500). The injectables market is only 10% tapped.

Operating Metrics: Average revenues per facility are $1.9 billion. Women account for 88% of med spa clients, and the average profit margin of a med spa is 20-25% of net sales. Start-up costs range from $700,000 to $1 million, with up to half of that allocated to leasing the latest laser machines. This is a fragmented industry of mostly small operators – 81% are single location entities.

Demographics: Americans underwent 9.2 million surgical and non-surgical procedures performed in 2022, including Botox injections, dermal fillers, laser hair removal, chemical peels, microdermabrasion, and skin rejuvenation. Non-surgical procedures jumped 23% in 2022. Aging Baby Boomers and Millennials are fueling continued growth.

Franchising in this industry has been a rocky road, as a growth model. There are just 8 active franchisors, operating 247 outlets. Several companies have gone out of business in the past decade, due to a poor understanding of the business, too much spent on marketing, a lack of expense control, botched procedures, and overly optimistic revenue estimates.

This is a complicated business and not all clinicians and nurses opening up a med spa possess the business and management skills needed to survive. Many wind up selling to private equity investors.

More Report Information

The complete report is a 133-page analysis that brings together in one place the most accurate, up-to-date and comprehensive information about the U.S. medical spas industry, including: nature of the business, industry history, operating metrics, national & state revenues, a discussion of why franchising has been problematic, growth drivers and demand for non-invasive cosmetic procedures, company profiles, industry structure, major trends, growth markets and more. The report contains 45 tables & charts. Price: $1,295. Purchase at: marketdataenterprises.com. Detailed table of contents are the same website. More information?  Call: 813-971-8080.