Wellness at Center of Consumer Pivot from the “Experience” to the “Transformation” Economy

Wellness at Center of Consumer Pivot from the “Experience” to the “Transformation” Economy 

By Thierry Malleret, economist

WELLNESS AND “THE TRANSFORMATION ECONOMY” 

Until the turn of the millennium, we lived in the service economy. Then came the “experience economy,” a term popularized in a book of the same title published in 1999. In it, Joseph Pine (an American management theorist) and his co-author argued that, increasingly, consumers wanted to access not just goods or services, but memorable experiences.  

Pine posits in his new book, “The Transformation Economy: Guiding Customers to Achieve Their Aspirations,” that consumer expectations are shifting again, with people wanting not just memorable experiences, but transformative ones. This is what he calls the transformation economy. His key argument: goods and services (i.e., the service economy) and memorable experiences (i.e., the experience economy) are no longer sufficient to attract and retain customers. Why? Because “customers are clamoring to change, eager to reach their aspirations, and to become better versions of themselves.”  

It’s clear that the wellness economy has a place right at the heart of this new transformation economy. The reason: experiences only leave a memory whereby transformation makes a lasting change with specific outcomes. When we go the gym, to a wellness retreat, or on a walk in nature, we do so to feel well and typically to transform ourselves. Hence, any business that helps us to be healthier and feel happier is a transformational business. This is another key trend that will support the expansion of the wellness industry. 

BUT! While the transformation economy is potentially great news for the industry, there will be conditions. Benefit will only flow if wellness offerings deliver observable, tangible, and when possible, evidence-based results. Going to the gym, meditating for an hour or ingesting a supplement won’t hack it if they don’t serve an effective purpose. What does this mean for individual companies? They’ll have to (1) customize their offerings, because only tailor-made services can prevent the low-margin dead-end of commoditization, and (2) be trusted, since wellness can be elusive and hard to measure. Only those companies that build trustworthy brands and present outcomes will do well in the long-term.