ISPA report shows U.S. spa industry strength

The International Spa Association (ISPA) released its annual 2015 U.S. Spa Industry Study earlier this month, including statistics on the industry’s growth, its characteristics and drawing a profile of what the industry encompasses. The major report includes in-depth details about the performance of this US$15.5 billion industry over the past year. Though a similar study has not been done on the Canadian industry, this report from our southern neighbours is a good indicator about how the spa industry is performing here at home.

Highlights from the report include:

• Total revenue rose 5.3% over the prior year to $15.5 billion for 2014
• Total number of spa visits rose 6.7% over 2013, to 176 million in 2014
• Total number of locations was 20,660 at year-end 2014 (2.4% increase)
• Total number of employees reached 360,000 at year-end 2014 (up 2.9% over the prior year)
• Revenue per visit dropped 1.3% to $88
• Average revenues per single spa location rose 2.9% to $749,000 in 2014

With the U.S. industry on a steady increase, the report reveals most spas have plans underway to build on that momentum to increase their business, including: 74% plan to add new treatments; 60% will add new product lines; and 46% of respondents mentioned a new spa or expansion of an existing location.