Approximately 60% of U.S. adults purchased from a DTC brand in 2021. With an increasing number of shopping channels popping up, consumers have more choices than ever. This means staying innovative is more crucial than ever.
We’re covering 5 eCommerce trends in the health & wellness industry to help your DTC brand stay competitive.
Why Hop On These eCommerce Trends in the Health & Wellness Industry Now?
The global health & wellness market has grown substantially since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic as more people began prioritizing health & wellness.
The industry is massive, so there are lots of areas to carve out your niche. Subcategories include:
- Fitness
- Mental health
- Nutrition
- Immune health
- Sleep
- Physical health
- Appearance, beauty, cosmetics
- Mindfulness
The industry’s also expanding at an average annual growth rate of 9.9%, and it’s expected to become a $7 trillion industry by 2025. A whopping 5.3% of global economic output comes from the health & wellness sector.
There are also some competitive advantages to starting a health & wellness brand. These brands have high repeat purchase rates because the products become part of consumers’ habitual routines, so you can attract lifetime customers more easily.
On top of that, the products are seen as essential to some aspect of the consumer’s health, so consumers are more likely to spend continuously and often on a health & wellness product they like.
And with talks of a recession, starting a nutrition brand can be more advantageous now than ever. So let’s break down these 5 eCommerce trends in the health & wellness industry so you can get started scaling your business.
Trend #1: Subscription Features
Health & wellness products are an essential part of people’s daily routines. That means online purchases of health & wellness products tend to be ritualistic/habitual in that consumers purchase these products on a regular basis.
Scheduled home delivery or subscription features can help drive retention for DTC brands in the eCommerce space.
They also make forecasting demand easier. Subscriptions give you a reliable idea of what your future will look like and how much product you’ll need to store.
Fulfilling subscriptions isn’t always easy, though. If you’re having trouble managing all of your subscriptions, you may find partnering with a 3PL like Jay Group for subscription fulfillment services beneficial.
Trend #2: Personalized Nutrition Products
People also want personalization these days when it comes to health & wellness products.
Consumers are more likely to buy a product that’s been tailor-made for them. A recent study found that 58% of consumers are very interested in personalized supplement products that are made “just for them.” In younger consumers surveyed (Gen Z and millennials), that number was 71%.
Some nutrition and supplement brands have started asking their customers to complete quick questionnaires or surveys about their daily lifestyles, food and exercise habits, and fitness goals to offer personalized nutrition and supplement recommendations.
Gainful, for example, follows trends #1 and #2 perfectly. They provide a monthly, personalized subscription box that is custom-tailored to each consumer’s fitness goals. That way, each customer becomes a repeat customer and receives personalized products.
Trend #3: DTC Brand Influencer Partnerships
In today’s rapidly changing digital landscape, consider partnering your DTC brand with an influencer with content related to sports nutrition or health & wellness to broaden your reach and build ethos.
Not all influencer endorsements are made equal, though.
Contrary to popular belief, partnering with smaller influencers who’ve built strong, authentic connections with their audience has been shown to have a higher media impact value (MIV) than partnering with larger celebrity influencers who have weaker connections with their audience.
Basically, authenticity trumps a high follower count–usually. Unless you have Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson endorsing your protein powder, you’re probably better off seeking out smaller influencers with deep connections to their loyal fanbases than higher-profile celebs.
Not only will your marketing budget thank you, but you’ll probably see higher ROI in the long run.
Trend #4: Additional Fitness & Wellness Services Offered By DTC Brands
Some fitness and nutrition brands have also begun offering virtual workout classes, in-person sessions, or free fitness app subscriptions with the purchase of one of their products.
Virtual wellness experiences are growing in popularity, and people like receiving perks when purchasing health & wellness products these days.
Some brands offer special app connectivity to help with health & wellness routines:
- Weight loss apps, home workout apps, and training and health tracking apps are some of the most highly downloaded apps on the app store today.
- Integrating your health & wellness brand with a health-based, community-oriented app can be a helpful way to expand your brand’s offerings and boost brand loyalty and awareness.
Trend #5: Broaden Your Sports Nutrition Supplement Offerings
With so many areas of health & wellness to focus on, carving out your niche in the industry can help you hone your brand and stay on top of DTC eCommerce trends in your specific sector.
Product offerings continue to grow as the body of research on exercise science and sports medicine grows, but here are some popular products to give your company product ideas:
Pre-workout
These supplements boost energy levels to enhance athletic performance. Drinkable pre-workouts are a fast-growing market, so you’ll want to move away from pill and capsule pre-workouts if you want to compete in this sector.
Probiotics
Probiotics are foods or supplements that contain live microorganisms intended to maintain or improve healthy bacteria in the body. This market is expected to grow to a value of $85.4 billion USD by 2027 due to increased demand for plant-based products and personalized nutrition products.
Prebiotics
Prebiotics—different from probiotics—are foods (typically high in fiber) that act as a food for human microflora. As health drinks and nutrition bars continue to become more popular, the prebiotic market is expected to follow suit.
Immunity Supplements
These are your vitamins and multivitamins. Consumer interest in immunity supplements continues to grow because of rising health concerns. However, some researchers express skepticism about the impact these supplements actually have on your immune system.
Whatever you’re selling–whether it be holistic medicine or creatine monohydrate–it’s no secret that selling supplements online can be challenging. If your brand is struggling with order fulfillment, Jay Group has you covered.
How Jay Group Can Help You
Working with just any 3PL partner won’t necessarily cut it. If you’re a DTC health, wellness, sports supplement, or nutrition brand, you need a 3PL partner that can also add the extra touches, like customizing packages with kitting services. Jay Group personalizes and customizes the unboxing experience so each customer feels special.
We also provide name labels, lot tracking, and expiration tracking so each customer always gets fresh and ready-to-use products instead of close-to-expiring products.
Our experienced and passionate team is here to take your health & wellness brand to the next level. Contact our team today to get started.
