I've been watching PE firms chase med spas like they're the last deals on earth. And yes, even I briefly considered investing in one local to my parents' place in North Carolina.
The med spa gold rush is here, and everyone from KKR to search fund operators is racing to inject capital into these Botox boutiques.
PE Playbook: Medical Aesthetic Spas
State of Play
The med spa sector has become private equity's newest obsession. There are nearly 10,500 med spas in the U.S., and 90% remain independently owned—that's over 9,400 mom-and-pop shops just waiting to be rolled up.
The money flooding in is serious. KKR took a minority stake in SkinSpirit in late 2022. BC Partners led a $120 million growth round into Princeton Medspa Partners in 2024. Ares Management backed LaserAway's 70+ clinic empire. Even search funds are piling in—Aesthetic Partners, launched by a Harvard MBA in 2018, acquired 30 clinics before attracting Norwest Equity Partners as a minority investor in 2023.
The frenzy reminds me of the dental and vet clinic roll-up boom over the last two decades—except with better margins and Instagram-worthy storefronts.
Let's explore why PE has fallen in love with the med spa industry and the different models being deployed to cash in.