The 84 billion dollar industry

According to some research, the yoga industry is worth over $84 billion worldwide and an average yogi spends $62,640 over his or her lifetime on classes, workshops, and accessories. Surprising? Not really. In the US, one of the biggest markets, the increase in the obese population and a better health awareness drove the growth.

In 2017 already, ‘Yoga’ along with words like ‘Facebook’ and ‘Twitter’ were among the top fifteen most popular words in the British society.

A mat, 2 blocks, and prayer beads please!

In the entire world, “yogis” have colonised the streets and have stopped wearing proper clothes. In Singapore, unless you are around the bus stops on the morning commute, people dress almost exclusively in exercise gear. Americans spend $16 billion on yoga classes, clothing, equipment, and accessories each year. Ages 25 to 34 spent the most on active wear.

A little midlife crisis, please!

The number of over 50s practicing yoga has tripled over the last four years. Yes! As Claire Dederer* puts it in her book*: via the calming effect of yoga, the postboomer-female attempt to transcend her anxious perfectionism by being more perfect herself.

In Singapore only, 12 percent of the residents are above retirement age, with that figure set to rise significantly. Some fitness studios already leverage on this aging population to differentiate their offering. Helped by the health promotion board, wellness is on the rise for the last 10 years. Little test: walk in the city and count the number of studios you cross along the way.

Key findings and statistics about yoga:

  • The number of American men doing yoga has more than doubled, going from 4 million in 2012 to 10 million in 2016
  • The number of American adults over 50 doing yoga has tripled over the last four years to reach 14 million.
  • 75% of yoga practitioners participate in other forms of exercise including running, cycling, biking, hiking, etc
    The Asia health and fitness industry grew by 5.7 per cent a year between 2014 and 2018, according to US-based firm Market Research, and is expected to hit 6.4 per cent annually between 2018 and 2023.

 

Given the constraints of most family’s lives these days, there really is nowhere to go but in. And yoga is the perfect representation of it.

 

Sources

https://blog.technavio.com/blog/yoga-upswing-north-america
Poser: My Life in Twenty-three Yoga Poses, Claire Dereder,
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/new-survey-reveals-the-rapid-rise-of-yoga-and-why-some-people-still-havent-tried-it-201603079179