How millennials are spending on wellness to look and feel good

Millennials exist in an environment of social media and tech gadgets. But regardless of the digital connection, feelings of isolation also plague many in this generation. To cope, millennials are embracing healthy living and are willing to pay reduced for it. Money Mind reports.

The past year has been a amount of self-discovery for music artist Narelle Kheng.

Since the pop band The Sam Willows continued hiatus, the 27-year-old has been working on solo music - a trilogy project that tracks her emotional growth and personal development.

Like the majority of other millennials, self-care has been a center point for Narelle, who has been vocal about her struggles with mental health.

For the most part, her stress originates from wearing way too many hats.

“Sometimes you're juggling a whole lot of projects, and there are some days where there is not a second where the human brain can change off. As a freelancer, there is no cut-off time to work. In order to literally be working from morning all the way before next morning. And so long as you have stuff to accomplish, you're still going to keep going.”

But Narelle has since learned to decelerate and look for a balance between work and self-care.

She's promised herself to prioritise her mental health insurance and personal well-being, de-stressing with activities such as for example meditation, writing a journal, and picking right up sports during the circuit breaker.

Dealing with anxiety and remaining resilient amid the pandemic have already been the key concerns for millennials over the past year, said professional services firm Aon.

The company’s well-being expert Amitabh Deka outlines some of these issues.

“Chronic fatigue, chronic stress is a big area of concern for millennials. And this is way more now, because we are all inside our own shells and spaces physically, and frequently virtually. Many millennials are also now new parents. They are expected to care for their aged parents aswell. So both these factors have further aggravated the strain that millennials 're going through. Not forgetting the challenges they have because of their job security.”

Experts say, as a generation, millennials are motivated to take charge of their physical, social and emotional health insurance and well-being.

A study by general market trends firm Nielsen that showed that 44 per cent of millennials choose healthy living to avoid high medical costs later on. They would like to remain mobile in later years (40 per cent) along with maintain good health to ensure that they are able to pursue personal goals (49 per cent).

The survey also discovered that millennials are buying more vitamins, supplements, organic and natural and gluten-free products. They are also paying close focus on nutrition information in food labels.

"They are very ready to spend and they are actually eating healthier," said Ms Adriana Chia, director of customised intelligence Singapore at Nielsen.

"They would like to look good on the outside and feel good on the inside," she said.

That is a trend benefiting businesses such as for example Yumi Active.

The home-grown workout apparel brand said it saw 40 per cent growth in 2020, despite a standard contraction in the retail sector.

Despite the fact that face-to-face activities were limited for public health reasons, many customers considered digital outlets to facilitate their house workouts.

Yumi Active were only available in 2018 and carries workout apparel that's priced between S$52 and S$98.

The merchandise feature Asian prints and custom-made fabrics.

According to founder Diana Chang, about 70 per cent of its customers are within their 20s and 30s.

Popular products include leggings, as well as other comfortable workout attire that doubles up as informal wear.

Yumi Active stands on a sweet spot as the global athleisure market is defined going to US$247.1 billion by 2025, from US$175.2 billion in 2020.

The segment is forecast to grow 6.7 % annually as sportswear becomes increasingly acceptable in a variety of social settings.

Yumi Active’s next move is to develop eco-sustainable fabric and make its products available outside Singapore.

Even as millennials make their own lifestyle choices, many organizations in Singapore are also upgrading to fill the wellness needs of their millennial workforce.

Aon’s Amitabh Deka said: “Companies are now making sure that their core offering is quite, very specific to the element of care. For instance, when they're looking at physical activities they are making certain there are competitions or gym memberships where persons can sign up to.

"In conditions of mental health, organisations who did not have employee assistance programme providers have quickly gone ahead to have EAP providers. They are providing capabilities to get mental health coaches or providing digital activities through mental health apps.”

Technologies that offer convenience in tracking health goals will be valuable for millennials, said Nielsen.

“What businesses can do is provide them with something that they can integrate to their lifestyle. In order to track what they are eating, just how many calories they consume. How much exercise they have to do every day,” said Ms Chia.

As millennials grow older, the demand for wellness product or service is only set to improve, and therefore businesses that gear up for this growing demand are well poised to tap on this wellness wellspring.