The American Society for Aesthetic Cosmetic Surgery released its annual statistical report this week. It makes for surprisingly interesting reading.
The headline is that total procedures (surgical and non-surgical) fell by 12 percent between 2007 and 2008. If anything, that decline strikes me as small. In economic terms, cosmetic surgery would be thought of as a luxury durable good that is a discretionary purchase. When the economy temporarily turns south, durable-good purchases plunge (e.g. automobiles) as consumers delay buying. Luxury goods are also hurt especially badly when the economy tanks. My guess is that the overall 12 percent decline in cosmetic procedures masks an automobile-industry-like decline in the last few months of 2008.
There is a key difference between the auto and cosmetic surgery industries, however. If you delay the purchase of a new car, your current car gets older and more rundown until you finally have no choice but to purchase a new one. Your body also gets older and more rundown, but unlike with a car, when things get too far gone, you just give up and never have the cosmetic fix-ups done.
Here are the statistics. People who are 35 to 50 years old get the most cosmetic work done, accounting for roughly 45 percent of the business. People in the 51- to 64-year-old range represent 26 percent of the procedures. People 65 and over, however, are responsible for only 6 percent of all the procedures.
Within procedures, there are further strong age patterns. Breast augmentation and nose jobs are heavily tilted toward the young. Tummy tucks are for 35- to 50-year-olds. People between 51 and 64 get facelifts.
Unlike the auto industry (although maybe not American automakers), which presumably will come back extremely strong, people might permanently skip their cosmetic procedures. Moreover, cosmetic procedures are complements with each other; if you never get that breast augmentation when you are young, or the tummy tuck in your forties, the value of a facelift when you are 60 is probably dramatically reduced.
How much longer can the Obama administration turn a deaf ear to the needs of the cosmetic surgery industry? It is long past time for a bailout.
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Couple of comments:
A lot of new car purchases are “vanity” purchases, i.e. people buying a new car before they actually need one, or upgrading from one brand to another to acquire higher status. As such, these are actually fairly discretionary purchases.
For example, my wife and I have a combined 150,000 miles on our two cars, and have talked on and off about buying a new car to replace one of the them for several years, but we never have because both still run just fine and have plenty of miles still left in them.
Cosmetic procedures, I’m guessing, are primarily purchased by the rich, and although they may be a lot less rich than they were a year ago, most are still so rich that they will think nothing of blowing 5-10K to look prettier.
After all, even if your net worth has declined from 100 million to 50 million, or from 10 million to 5 million, you’re not exactly hurting for money.
I disagree with your supposition that “if you never get that breast augmentation when you are young, or the tummy tuck in your forties, the value of a facelift when you are 60 is probably dramatically reduced.”
You may be born with adequate cleavage, eliminating the need for the first procedure, and keep fit enough to avoid the second, but anyone lucky enough to reach 60 has had to deal with the force of gravity on the face. Don’t see how skipping the first two procedures diminishes the value of the third.
I echo #5 Meagan B. Call’s comments and can add a very good contrast:
Burn victim = elective cosmetic for quality of life.
Entertainer = elective cosmetic for career advancement.
So which has slowed down?
Recession spurs gold-digging, which could explain the low 12%.
Maybe they need to extend incentives and warranties. You know, so if your face gets hit on the way to work, can you call for a truck to haul off your broken nose.
And they could consider installing the “OnStar” hardware directly under peoples’ cheekbones as a standard package. You get a look to match your chic heroin addiction, emergency “crash” assistance, and 100 talk minutes for a low, low introductory price of $14.99.
Pretty easy.
A new car last 7.5 years and gets you to work and back.
New burn/scar facial correction, breast implants/reductions, liposuction, rhinoplasty etc etc. last much longer than 7.5 years (possible liposuction exception).
Co-wokers like you more, give you rides to work, bosses see you are liked and like you more, get a raise.
Also, seeing a major improvement to your body puts a bigger smile on your face than looking out you window to see your salt encrusted, bird stained vehicle being keyed by the neighbors kids.
You can’t put lipstick on pigs (apparently), but you can dump money in Chrysler and GM.
People –especially young people– tend to be insecure about their looks, often more than is warranted. In an era characterized by suddenly massive insecurity, there may be a greater incentive than ever to invest in a make-over.