A Fit Future: The Latest in Health and Wellness Franchises Americans are more health conscious than ever before – and there's never been a better time to get in the business.

Think about your current life goals. Do you try to eat well? Get enough rest? Exercise regularly? Stay up to date on medical checkups? If so, and you live in the U.S., you have some good company. Plenty of research, statistics, surveys and recent studies have shown people in the U.S. have never been more focused on their collective health and wellness — including mental, as well as physical, well-being. This might be due in part as a response to the pandemic. In fact, nearly half of all respondents to a recent McKinsey & Company survey ranked wellness as their top priority, compared to two-to-three years ago. Given the recent data, it's an advantageous time to consider the hundreds of health and wellness franchise concepts in the marketplace today.

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Health & wellness has gotten personal

Just a few decades ago, a gym membership was considered a luxury for some. Now, we have personal trainers more accessible, who show up onsite and develop personaliozed exercise and nutrition programs. The ways in which we work out have not only diversified, but gotten more high-tech. We've now got wearable devices and trackers that monitor our caloric intake, our sleeping habits, our weight, heart rate and optimum exercise goals — all available in just a few clicks. There's also the rise of healthcare consumerism, in which individuals can shop, compare and select the healthcare choices that make the most sense for their personal health. Technology has made wellness affordable and convenient for anyone to access their health data. The global wellness market was recently determined to be worth $1.5 trillion. And this is a market that's expected to grow between 5-10% annually.

What kind of health and wellness franchises can you own?

There are thousands of workout routines and even more nutritional programs, but that's just scratching the surface when considering the number of health and wellness franchises in the marketplace today. There are business models that feature new-age gyms, swimming instruction, eye care, physical therapy, massage, stretching, weight loss centers and multiple varieties of spas and salon studios. For the majority of these business opportunities, you need no direct experience or practice, as the business models, training and support provided by franchisors should be enough to get you up, running and established. It's also true that health and wellness franchises tend to attract people who are passionate about living healthy lifestyles. A great place to do research is in your own community. Health and wellness businesses may be fairly common, but there's typically not a complete monopoly on all the concepts designed to help consumers get healthy. See if you can't find a niche concept and take advantage of the wellness gap in your own backyard.

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Which health & wellness franchises made the list?

Among the concepts listed in this year's Franchise 500, Pearle Vision made an appearance in the top-50, coming in at No. 45 overall. In addition to this brand, there were several similar vision-related business models whose performance garnered attention. The Joint Chiropractic, a franchise that can be run by acquiring a qualified staff, is up to over 630 units — an increase of 54% over the past three years. Coming in at the tail end of the list is StretchLab, a franchise that takes clients on an assisted stretching regimen to develop muscles and facilitate recovery. They currently have more than 120 locations, but noted an increase in unit sales of 2,950% over the past three years — an indication they're providing a service that's clearly catching on with consumers. For a look at the rest of Entrepreneur's 2022 Top Health & Wellness Franchises, simply click on the following link.