The wellness appointment is winning. The doctor’s appointment? Not so much, and the credit card is picking up the tab.
So finds salon and spa industry software provider Zenoti, which surveyed 1,000 U.S. adults earlier this year on their beauty and wellness spending habits, all of them beauty and wellness service users across every age bracket.
The headline finding: more than one in five Americans are trading essentials to keep their self-care routines intact, with 21% delaying medical or dental care and 22% cutting back on groceries to fund their appointments.
The “why” is interesting, too: 63% of Zenoti’s respondents said cutting back on beauty or wellness spending would leave them more stressed, less confident or frustrated. Meanwhile, 33% said their job is what pushed them to prioritize self-care in the first place, a stat that coincides with rising rates of workplace stress.
Even more telling is just how far they’d go. According to Zenoti, 46% report they would “definitely” or “possibly” use credit cards, buy now, pay later services or loans to maintain their beauty or wellness routines if they lost their primary income. Another 29% have already reduced their savings contributions or debt payments to maintain their self-care habits.
It’s also about what consumers are willing to cut back on to pursue wellness and self-care.
The social calendar appears to take the first (and biggest) hit: 68% of respondents said they are cutting back on outings. Vacations are next, as even as wellness tourism booms, 35% of Americans have delayed a vacation to keep up with their beauty and self-care routines, Zenoti found.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Gen Z is all in on wellness, but also a little in the red: 21% said they would “definitely” take on debt to maintain their beauty and wellness routines if they lost their primary income, nearly eight times the rate of boomers at 3%.
The commitment, though, appears to come with a level of secrecy regarding spending. More than half (58%) of Gen Z respondents admitted they have hidden or downplayed their beauty and wellness spending, and 38% said they feel expected to maintain standards they cannot comfortably afford.
Even with self-care treated as essential, the belt is tightening somewhat. Appointments are safe, but are being booked less often, according to 45% of respondents. A smaller amount (32%) is downgrading to cheaper versions of their usual treatments.
Fitness also appeared in Zenoti’s findings: 27% of men said exercise or gym time is their primary form of self-care, compared with 17% of women.
But there’s another way the fitness floor is serving consumers: as a third space. It’s an area operators are already elevating, such as The Bay Club and its weekly pop-up classes or The Athletic Clubs’ squad-based competitions.
“We’re seeing a real cultural shift, especially with Gen Z, where fitness is starting to replace traditional nightlife,” Zenoti director of customer success Lesley Silvestre said. “More people are choosing evening workouts, group classes or run clubs instead of heading to bars, reflecting a stronger focus on health, longevity and overall well-being. In many ways, the gym is becoming the new social hub, a place where community, lifestyle and self-care naturally come together.”
What the data ultimately suggests is that American consumers may be stressed, stretched and maxed out, but the wellness appointment is the last thing they are willing to cancel. For now, at least.
