Covid Recovery for Wellness Businesses
MINDBODY has just released their State of the Industry report for 2022 and I thought I’d share a few interesting tidbits.
Covid Has Been HARD on Wellness Businesses
Demand Shock was felt dramatically as demand literally went to 0 and consumers were told it wasn’t safe to go to studios. I’d say Demand Shock is an appropriate term. Most of us weren’t saving enough for that big and long of a rainy day.
25-30% of wellness businesses closed during the pandemic, according to IHRSA. I wonder if it’s more.
Slow Recovery Is Underway
Recovery is uneven, affected greatly by changed consumer habits.
Those business that pivoted during the pandemic of covid and are still open, are still not at pre-pandemic revenue numbers.
Consumers still need us
30% of consumers say they used to work out pre pandemic and now don’t. 78% say wellness is a priority. Consumers are more concerned about managing mental health now than ever before.
Growth
Fritz Layman, the CEO of MINDBODY said at the Bold Conference 2022, “Recovery is happening. Especially the last 6 months. If you can take a step back and look at the last 20 years, the industry has seen tons of growth and will continue to. You would see a chart that looks like a massive hockey stick.”
My thoughts? We wellpreneurs are still in a bit of a contraction phase. This phase came a bit fast and furious, but is there any other way for change to happen? That doesn’t mean we aren’t successful. Success can be defined by many measures, some of which are tangible and some are intangible. Redefine your success and keep on fine tuning your magic. We get to be the stewards of life enhancing, soul expanding, heart felt connection! We need to pay rent, ourselves, and our team, well enough to feel good about the energy exchange. We need to look deeply at what our customers need and want most. What are we are uniquely excellent at creating? I’m excited that consumers have responded with better priorities (yes mental health is more important than looks) and that the larger industry sees the potential as well.