There’s a customer in the middle of your client list who has more money than anyone else in the room, spends it freely on looking and feeling good, and has almost never been marketed to on purpose. She’s Gen X—and if your wellness pitch is aimed at trend-chasing twenty-somethings or longevity-obsessed boomers, you’re stepping right over the person most likely to buy.

The numbers are hard to argue with. Gen X accounts for $15.2 trillion of global consumer spend in 2025, per NielsenIQ—trailing only boomers, and this is the smallest living generation. They’re in peak earning years, projected to pass $20 trillion by 2033 as they buy for parents, kids, and themselves. NielsenIQ’s own framing calls them “overlooked and under-marketed” even as they emerge as the most influential consumer cohort on earth. And they’re entering their wellness era. For the salon-wellness industry, that’s not a niche observation—it’s a strategic opening.

Click here to read the entire article in the latest issue of Smart Tan Magazine online.