Day Spas and Tanning Salons
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 30,900 day spas and tanning salons in the US provide personal care services to clients, including massages, indoor and sunless tanning, skincare treatments, and nail care treatments. Day spas and tanning salons also sell skincare and body care products, cosmetics, candles, vitamins and nutritional supplements, and other retail products. Some day spas also offer hair care services.
Competition for Services
Day spas face competition from other providers of massages and skin treatments, including hotel and resort spas, medical spas, fitness centers, independent masseuses, nail salons, and dermatology practices.
Indoor Tanning Health Concerns
Concerns over the health risks of using tanning beds threaten to reduce demand for tanning salons.
Industry size & Structure
The average day spa has 16 employees and generates over $842,000 in annual revenue, while the average tanning salon has 6 employees and generates about $275,000 in annual revenue.
- The spa industry in the US has about 21,500 locations, employs 345,000 people, and generates about $18 billion in annual revenue. About 80% of locations are day spas, with the remainder consisting of hotel and resort spas, destination spas, and medical spas.
- Tanning salons in the US have about 9,400 locations, 60,500 employees and generate about $2.6 billion in annual revenue.
- US consumers made 182 million visits to spas in 2023, according to the International SPA Association.
- Most day spas and tanning salons are independently owned and operated. Franchise locations of large chains account for less than 5% of industry revenue.
- Day spa chains include Massage Envy, Woodhouse Day Spa, and Bliss.
- Tanning salon chains include Palm Beach Tan, Planet Beach Tan, Hollywood Tans, and LA Tan.
Industry Forecast
Day Spas and Tanning Salons Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Mar 19, 2025 - Ticket Sizes Up in 2024
- Ticket sizes increased 15% for both membership-based and non-membership spas in 2024, according to the 2025 Beauty and Wellness Benchmark Report by Zenoti in Salon Today. Memberships were a top growth area for salons, waxing centers, membership spas, and medspas, which averaged a 24% boost in membership in 2024 compared to a year ago. Membership programs increase the number of customers who visit more than five times a year by 10% and benefit salons by providing reliable recurring revenue and building long-term client relationships. The Zenoti report found that the beauty and wellness industry showed a 2% increase in growth in 2024 compared to 5% in 2023. Businesses that focused on adding locations in 2024 saw a 5% increase in revenue. Customer loyalty also stood out as a vital income generator, with 42% of loyal clients driving 80% of revenue.
- Personal care services, included in the “Other Services” category, is one of the 14 industries reporting growth in February’s Services ISM Report on Business. Executives in the Other Services industry reported increases in business activity, new services, and employment, while reporting decreased inventories, lower order backlogs, and higher prices paid for materials and services. Other services industries reporting growth during the period included Finance & Insurance; Wholesale Trade; Utilities; Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting; Mining; Real Estate, and Rental & Leasing. The three services industries reporting contraction during the period were Management of Companies & Support Services; Retail Trade; and Educational Services. Overall, economic activity in the services sector expanded in February, with the Services PMI registering 53.5%.
- Spas are increasingly incorporating biohacking principles to offer clients a new level of personalized services, as niche practices enter the mainstream, according to a report in American Spa. Biohacking includes a range of procedures aimed at boosting performance, wellness, and longevity with technologies including cryotherapy, infrared saunas, and neurofeedback. The cryotherapy process exposes the body to extremely cold temperatures for short durations, which can have benefits like reduced inflammation, improved circulation, faster recovery, and enhanced mood. Spas are incorporating lymphatic support techniques into wellness practices to help reduce stress, promote relaxation, and restore balance to the body’s healing mechanisms by eliminating toxins and metabolic waste. Red light therapy is a non-invasive treatment with infrared light known to reduce signs of aging, improve skin health, and alleviate muscle soreness. Infrared saunas use infrared light to penetrate and heal the body. Neurofeedback and meditation pods can improve relaxation and mental clarity.
- Day spas and tanning salons will have to monitor minimum wage changes in 2025, as 21 states and 50 local jurisdictions increased their minimum wages, according to Chain Store Age. States with the highest minimum wage in the US are Washington ($16.66 per hour), California ($16.50), and New York ($16.50). Nearly 30 cities in California and seven towns in Washington will raise minimum wages in 2025, with Tukwila, Washington, offering the highest minimum hourly wage in the US at $21.10. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the minimum wage change will affect more than $9 million workers and raise pay by a combined $5.7 billion. Unchanged since 2009, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, and some 20 states, primarily located in the South and the Midwest, use the federal minimum as their wage floor.
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