Christine Esposito, Managing Editor01.31.24
The Global Wellness Summit (GWS) released its annual Future of Wellness report, its forecast of what is likely to make waves in the world of wellness. According to GWS, the global wellness market will grow from $5.6 trillion in 2022 to $8.5 trillion by 2027.
GWS shared its 2024 insight in New York City on January 30 during a special event designed for media. In addition to short updates on 10 key trends, the day’s agenda included insight from experts spanning functional medicine (Dr. Frank Lipman, MD), sports (Katrina Adams, former president and CEO of the United States Tennis Association) and travel tourism (Cathy Feliciano-Chon). Skincare brands, spas and other wellness category stakeholders had tabletop displays, too.
According to GWS, it is clear that wellness remains an important priority. But the kind of wellness—and for whom—is undergoing transformation, asserts GWS.
Generational, income and gender gaps are widening and are creating a wellness landscape increasingly defined by very different—even contradictory—markets and mindsets, say experts at GWS.
Speaking inside the JP Morgan Chase headquarters, Beth McGroarty, VP of research and forecasting at GWS, described the two polarized wellness markets as “hardcare” and “softcare.”
The former is the “hyper-medical, high-tech and more expensive” wellness marketplace. The latter captures what GWS experts say is a new desire for “low-pressure, simpler, less expensive, less relentlessly self-optimizing” wellness—where emotional and social wellbeing matter most.
GWS contends there’s a growing polarity between “harder” and “softer” care that will continue to widen.
Softcare is “low-fi, ancient, social, emotional, deeply human wellness,” according to GWS.
GWS says younger generations (especially women) are pushing back against the past decade of high-pressure, “uber-commodified” wellness. Instead, they are recasting wellness as a messier, more joyful, simpler and cheaper affair.
Need an example? On stage, McGroarty and Suzie Ellis, chairman and CEO of GWS, talked about #bedrotting—the selfcare trend that’s been flowing across TikTok. (It means spending long spans of time in bed.)
That’s not to say they aren’t spending money. GWS has forecast that the personal care and beauty market—one of the 11 markets it tracks under its wellness economy banner—will rise from just over $1.08 billion in 2022 to $1.43 in 2027 (representing a 5.7% projected average annual growth rate).
GWS also pointed to the rise of “climate-adaptive” beauty, such as “geoskincare.” These products are tailored to specific climate or geographical conditions.
What’s more, in terms of travel, people are moving away from traditional “hotspots,” trading beaches and deserts for mountains in a move toward what’s being called “cool-cations.”
For example, while nearly half a million pilgrims completed the famous Camino de Santiago in Spain in 2023 (a new record), scores of modern pilgrims were also drawn to off-the-beaten-path sites from Japan’s Shikoku 88.
According to GWS, the wellness industry is responding with a new wave of solutions designed to help men reconnect with themselves and with one another. Examples include men’s retreats and new mental health apps designed specifically by and for men. So-called “softer” forms of wellness will serve as a much-needed catalyst for male connection, and GWS anticipates that social and emotional wellness offerings for men will become more nuanced, more evenly distributed across all stages of life and more global.
No. 4: The Rise of Postpartum Wellness
Following childbirth, new parents typically find themselves in a care “desert” as all the attention is on the baby. While giving birth is a massive physical event, and new parenthood often entails serious mental health challenges, postpartum care has been grossly ignored. GWS say a new, comprehensive postpartum wellness is now taking many directions.
Cultures around the world have postpartum retreat traditions for the mom and baby that focus on deep rest, healthy food, baby-care education, massage and therapeutic bathing for the birthing parent.
More femtech startups are dedicated to postpartum care across the spectrum—from c-section recovery services to a boom in pelvic floor care products/services, reports GWS.
The wellness consumer goods market has exploded with options, from postpartum skincare to supplements, while brands are also destigmatizing sexual wellness post-birth, notes GWS.
GWS presented insight from Kenneth R. Pelletier, PhD, MD, clinical professor at UCSF School of Medicine, who identifies the eight key areas of research driving the practical applications of longevity science—including personalized plans grounded in genetic, epigenetic and biomarker testing; research on senolytics (drugs that can remove senescent cells); telomere regeneration; nutrigenomics; and a new AI/GPT-driven healthcare. It provides a much-needed framework for what matters in what’s become a Wild West of longevity solutions.
GWS also pointed to the fast-growing longevity clinic category concept. Most offer advanced diagnostic testing (biomarker, genetic, hormonal, full-body MRIs, etc.) to identify issues before they become a problem. Others offer experimental, less-proven approaches such as stem cell treatments and plasma exchange—and the usual biohacking/recovery treatments (IV drips, cryotherapy, ozone therapy, etc.)—but now in the name of longevity, according to GWS.
In addition, GWS says high-end gyms are becoming full-blown longevity clinics, offering work-ups (preventative diagnostic testing, scans, etc.) along with their workouts. Players in this growing sector such as Spain’s SHA Wellness, Switzerland’s Clinique La Prairie and Six Senses, which is opening medical-longevity clubs (called Rosebar) that offer epigenetic testing as well as stem cell therapy.
The trend includes “Home Health Care,” where homes are becoming advanced “outpatient” care centers powered by digital health services—from fully-integrated telehealth to new health monitoring and diagnostic technology, reducing reliance on in-person interactions with practitioners. There is so much innovation in using M-health (mobile health) for home healthcare. For example, GWS pointed to foneDX, which uses existing smartphone sensors and an app to measure a person’s critical heart and lung health right at home.
Cities are becoming high-tech health hubs, too. An example shared by GWS is Saudi Arabia’s new smart city NEOM. Unfolding in 2025, a futuristic healthcare system called Dr. NEOM continuously collects health data from the population and houses it in a “digital twin” file of every resident.
These tidbits shared by Ellis were based her own notes taken and discussions had during the GWS 2023 Summit event in Miami last November.
More information can be found online at www.globalwellnesssummit.com.
GWS shared its 2024 insight in New York City on January 30 during a special event designed for media. In addition to short updates on 10 key trends, the day’s agenda included insight from experts spanning functional medicine (Dr. Frank Lipman, MD), sports (Katrina Adams, former president and CEO of the United States Tennis Association) and travel tourism (Cathy Feliciano-Chon). Skincare brands, spas and other wellness category stakeholders had tabletop displays, too.
According to GWS, it is clear that wellness remains an important priority. But the kind of wellness—and for whom—is undergoing transformation, asserts GWS.
Generational, income and gender gaps are widening and are creating a wellness landscape increasingly defined by very different—even contradictory—markets and mindsets, say experts at GWS.
Speaking inside the JP Morgan Chase headquarters, Beth McGroarty, VP of research and forecasting at GWS, described the two polarized wellness markets as “hardcare” and “softcare.”
The former is the “hyper-medical, high-tech and more expensive” wellness marketplace. The latter captures what GWS experts say is a new desire for “low-pressure, simpler, less expensive, less relentlessly self-optimizing” wellness—where emotional and social wellbeing matter most.
GWS contends there’s a growing polarity between “harder” and “softer” care that will continue to widen.
Hardcare vs. Softcare
What is considered hardcare? Think longevity clinics and weight loss drugs—spaces where medicine is “muscling in more than ever before,” said McGroarty.Softcare is “low-fi, ancient, social, emotional, deeply human wellness,” according to GWS.
GWS says younger generations (especially women) are pushing back against the past decade of high-pressure, “uber-commodified” wellness. Instead, they are recasting wellness as a messier, more joyful, simpler and cheaper affair.
Need an example? On stage, McGroarty and Suzie Ellis, chairman and CEO of GWS, talked about #bedrotting—the selfcare trend that’s been flowing across TikTok. (It means spending long spans of time in bed.)
That’s not to say they aren’t spending money. GWS has forecast that the personal care and beauty market—one of the 11 markets it tracks under its wellness economy banner—will rise from just over $1.08 billion in 2022 to $1.43 in 2027 (representing a 5.7% projected average annual growth rate).
10 Wellness Trends for 2024
McGroarty and Ellis discussed each of the 10 trends detailed in its “The Future of Wellness 2024 Trends” report.No. 1: Climate-Adaptive Wellness
With an increasingly heat-crushed planet, bringing massive physical and mental health risks, GWS says will bring about “climate-adaptive wellness”— a wave of innovations that can cool bodies, homes and cities. Smart-tech cooling clothing will go mainstream, as will wearables that monitor the body’s heat indicators, from core temperature to hydration to electrolytes, said GWS.GWS also pointed to the rise of “climate-adaptive” beauty, such as “geoskincare.” These products are tailored to specific climate or geographical conditions.
What’s more, in terms of travel, people are moving away from traditional “hotspots,” trading beaches and deserts for mountains in a move toward what’s being called “cool-cations.”
No. 2: The Power of the Pilgrimage
According to GWS, a silver lining that came out of the pandemic is the rediscovery of the simple joys and health benefits that come from walking, and a purposeful connection with nature. Today, walking enthusiasts are dramatically expanding their horizons by exploring ancient pilgrimage trails, fueling a global trend as record numbers of travelers take up multi-day hikes infused with spiritual exploration and cultural heritage in countries around the world.For example, while nearly half a million pilgrims completed the famous Camino de Santiago in Spain in 2023 (a new record), scores of modern pilgrims were also drawn to off-the-beaten-path sites from Japan’s Shikoku 88.
No. 3: From Manning Up to Opening Up
Wellness has long provided a space for women to open up, explore their emotions, and build community, but the same can’t be said for men. They’ve either been left out of the equation or wellness offerings reinforced a clichéd view of masculinity—like warrior-like fitness challenges to “tough-guy biohacks.” At the same time, shifting gender roles and a societal revolt against old-school masculinity have left men without a rulebook for what it means to “be a man” today.According to GWS, the wellness industry is responding with a new wave of solutions designed to help men reconnect with themselves and with one another. Examples include men’s retreats and new mental health apps designed specifically by and for men. So-called “softer” forms of wellness will serve as a much-needed catalyst for male connection, and GWS anticipates that social and emotional wellness offerings for men will become more nuanced, more evenly distributed across all stages of life and more global.
No. 4: The Rise of Postpartum Wellness
Following childbirth, new parents typically find themselves in a care “desert” as all the attention is on the baby. While giving birth is a massive physical event, and new parenthood often entails serious mental health challenges, postpartum care has been grossly ignored. GWS say a new, comprehensive postpartum wellness is now taking many directions.
Cultures around the world have postpartum retreat traditions for the mom and baby that focus on deep rest, healthy food, baby-care education, massage and therapeutic bathing for the birthing parent.
More femtech startups are dedicated to postpartum care across the spectrum—from c-section recovery services to a boom in pelvic floor care products/services, reports GWS.
The wellness consumer goods market has exploded with options, from postpartum skincare to supplements, while brands are also destigmatizing sexual wellness post-birth, notes GWS.
No. 5: Longevity Has Longevity
GWS described the speed at which longevity has seized the biotech, health and wellness spaces in the last year as “staggering.” Driven by an aging population seeking a longer health span and a medical establishment still not focused on prevention, longevity is here for the long game and will only ramp up in 2024, asserts GWS.GWS presented insight from Kenneth R. Pelletier, PhD, MD, clinical professor at UCSF School of Medicine, who identifies the eight key areas of research driving the practical applications of longevity science—including personalized plans grounded in genetic, epigenetic and biomarker testing; research on senolytics (drugs that can remove senescent cells); telomere regeneration; nutrigenomics; and a new AI/GPT-driven healthcare. It provides a much-needed framework for what matters in what’s become a Wild West of longevity solutions.
GWS also pointed to the fast-growing longevity clinic category concept. Most offer advanced diagnostic testing (biomarker, genetic, hormonal, full-body MRIs, etc.) to identify issues before they become a problem. Others offer experimental, less-proven approaches such as stem cell treatments and plasma exchange—and the usual biohacking/recovery treatments (IV drips, cryotherapy, ozone therapy, etc.)—but now in the name of longevity, according to GWS.
In addition, GWS says high-end gyms are becoming full-blown longevity clinics, offering work-ups (preventative diagnostic testing, scans, etc.) along with their workouts. Players in this growing sector such as Spain’s SHA Wellness, Switzerland’s Clinique La Prairie and Six Senses, which is opening medical-longevity clubs (called Rosebar) that offer epigenetic testing as well as stem cell therapy.
No. 6: A Wellness Check for Weight Loss Drugs
The wellness industry was shaken up with the arrival of Big Pharma’s extremely effective GLP-1-inhibiting weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro, said GWS. And there’s more on the way. At least 70 new drugs are in development, with new, cheaper, very effective options such as Zepbound (Eli Lily) hitting the market this year, according to GWS’s research.No. 7: Sports Finds Its Footing in Hospitality
After decades of fitness meaning lonely solo sessions at the gym, more people globally are embracing social, empowering sports (think the pickleball explosion)—and more people want to train like near-elite athletes. According to GWS, high-end wellness destinations are catering to recreational athletes who are serious about their sport, letting guests train and learn from their sports idols.No. 8: The Home as Highest-Tech-Health-Hub
According to WS, wellness-focused homes have been a megatrend for years with amenities like meditation rooms and cold plunge pools. Now homes and cities, are becoming truly high-tech, multifaceted health hubs, says GWS. The shift involves everything from the rise of medical-grade home health-monitoring systems to smart furnishings that adjust in real-time to individual wellbeing needs.The trend includes “Home Health Care,” where homes are becoming advanced “outpatient” care centers powered by digital health services—from fully-integrated telehealth to new health monitoring and diagnostic technology, reducing reliance on in-person interactions with practitioners. There is so much innovation in using M-health (mobile health) for home healthcare. For example, GWS pointed to foneDX, which uses existing smartphone sensors and an app to measure a person’s critical heart and lung health right at home.
Cities are becoming high-tech health hubs, too. An example shared by GWS is Saudi Arabia’s new smart city NEOM. Unfolding in 2025, a futuristic healthcare system called Dr. NEOM continuously collects health data from the population and houses it in a “digital twin” file of every resident.
No. 9: A New Multisensory, Immersive Art for Wellness
Art is no longer a passive experience; tech-enabled artists—powered by generative AI, projection mapping and spatial sound technologies—are bring their craft to the mainstream. There is a new era of multi-sensory, immersive art underway that engages all of all of the senses. GWS pointed to the Mandala Lab at the Rubin Museum in New York City, as an example. It combines video, scent, sculpture, and sound based on Buddhist principles into one holistic, spiritual exhibit.No. 10: Under the Radar
For its final trend, Ellis discussed some “under the radar” concepts to keep an eye on in the coming year. These included the need for more mental wellness solutions for teens, and governments embracing more innovative wellness policies with concepts such as “UNGDP”—moving beyond money-focused to quality-of-life metrics to gauge national wellbeing.These tidbits shared by Ellis were based her own notes taken and discussions had during the GWS 2023 Summit event in Miami last November.
18th Global Wellness Summit
This year’s 18th annual Summit will be held in St. Andrews, Scotland from November 4-7, 2024.More information can be found online at www.globalwellnesssummit.com.