'Wellness' is gaining attention as an ideal lifestyle, and related industries are also showing explosive growth. Wellness refers to a sustainable lifestyle that encompasses well-being, happiness, and health.
A recent definition of wellness is the one proposed by the Global Wellness Institute (GWI) in 2015, which states that it is a state of physical, mental, and social health and stability. In Japan, Professor Masashi Arakawa of the University of the Ryukyus proposed a new definition, stating that health is the foundation and wellness is a way of life, designing a wonderful life (QOL) based on physical health, mental health, environmental health, and social health, and self-realization.
Existing wellness research and promotion activities have been mainly conducted by medical professionals or those in the health and physical fitness fields, but in recent years, interest has been increasing in various industries including the beauty industry, restaurant industry, and tourism industry, including the SPA industry.
According to the 2024 report by the Global Wellness Institute (GWI), the global wellness market is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 7.3% to approximately USD 8.99 trillion (KRW 12,878 trillion) in 2028. In fact, the market size in 2023 was approximately USD 6.32 trillion, which is larger than the IT and sports markets. In line with this trend, domestic small and medium-sized enterprises and startups are quickly proposing wellness solutions in their respective fields of expertise and are attracting attention in the global market.
◆ 'At Home' challenges the global market with home skin care that resolves skin care restrictions
Skin health care is also emerging as one of the key elements of wellness. At Home launched a new skin care brand, 'THOME', to eliminate the burdensome skin care restrictions. At Home's 'THOME Program' helps consumers manage services that they could receive at professional dermatologists and skin care companies at home.
Since its launch, it has received positive responses, recording rapid growth in the domestic market. Recently, it has started selling in the global market, such as opening a separate brand store on Amazon, a major e-commerce platform in the United States, and has received collaboration proposals from large skin care companies in the United States and Canada. In the future, it plans to provide a wider range of skin health care solutions by expanding its product lineup and launching skin care devices.
◆ EAP specialist company implementing mental wellness, ‘Dain’
Since its establishment in 2005, Dain, Korea's first EAP (Employee Assistance Program) specialized company, has provided customized counseling and education solutions to improve the mental health of employees to leading companies and public institutions in Korea. Currently, Dain, which owns approximately 600 solution programs and 225 copyrights, is taking the lead in implementing 'mental wellness' beyond simple stress management.
Daein’s competitiveness is not limited to Korea. Through collaboration with various global partners, including ComPsych, the world’s largest EAP specialist, and Optum, a PBM under the U.S. insurance giant UnitedHealthcare, Daein provides EAP services to employees stationed overseas and executives of multinational companies, and its expertise and reliability are recognized on the international stage.
Dain is expanding its global network through close cooperation with major international organizations such as APEAR (Asia Pacific Employee Assistance Roundtable, Asia Pacific EAP Board) and EAPA (Employee Assistance Professionals Association, International EAP Association). Every year, CEO Song Min-kyung has attended the APEAR conference as a representative of Korea, where EAP companies and related experts from the Asia Pacific region gather to exchange information.
In particular, in 2016, Daein successfully hosted the first APEAR conference in Korea in Seoul, playing a major role in promoting the status of the domestic EAP industry on the international stage. Daein plans to host the APEAR conference in Korea again in 2026 to more effectively spread Korea’s mental health wellness model to the global market.
In addition, as the only institution that can hold and issue the international EAP certification 'FEA (Fundamentals of Employee Assistance)' in Korea, Daein plans to take the lead in fostering domestic and international EAP experts through activities such as promoting an exclusive contract for the Korean version of the 'CEAP (Certified Employee Assistance Professional)' certification in the future.
◆ Entering the global pet wellness market with a companion animal health diagnosis AI solution, 'AI For Pet'
As living with pets becomes more common, the 'pet wellness' market for the health and happiness of pets is growing rapidly. AI Pet operates 'TT Care', a total healthcare application that uses artificial intelligence (AI) technology to diagnose and manage the health of pets.
Titicare is a solution that checks for abnormal signs based on the results of AI learning from over 2.5 million pieces of pet disease-related data after taking pictures of the pet's eyes, skin, teeth, and walking pattern.
Additionally, you can customize your care, including vaccination schedules, weight management, and meal amounts, based on breed, life cycle, and disease information. Recently, the app has strengthened its functionality so that detailed health-related items, such as feeding amount, water intake, and nutritional supplement intake, can be recorded and managed all at once.
This year, AI Poppet is accelerating its entry into the global market by signing an official partnership with an American animal behavior education organization and opening an exclusive brand store on Amazon in the United States.
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