Wellness takes the lead in VML’s Future 100 Report

Global marketing agency VML Intelligence, which specialises in futures and trend forecasting, has released its 12^th annual Future 100 report.

The report is based on a global survey across 16 markets and identifies 100 emerging trends across ten sectors including technology, culture, travel, beauty, health and hospitality.

Placing a strong focus on wellness, the report reveals that rather than just coping with global disruption, people are embracing it as a catalyst for fundamental changes in how they live, spend and connect.

It coins the term ‘dysoptimism’, referring to a collective mood that acknowledges darkness while finding possibility in renewal.

Wellness in 2026 and beyond

The report asserts that the wellness industry in 2026 has moved past pampering and self-care into an era of structural resilience, where wellness is no longer just a luxury, but a survival strategy.

“The consumer isn’t looking for a temporary escape, they’re looking for a permanent upgrade,” the report states. “The future of wellness is not about feeling good for an hour – it’s about being ready for anything.”

Seeking resilience

The anchor of this shift is trend #81: Resilience wellness, which states the spa of the future is not just a place to relax, it’s a training ground for emotional and physical elasticity.

“The motivation to seek resilience comes from a desire to withstand uncertainty and find stability in an unpredictable world,” said Eiesha Bharti Pasricha, cofounder and artistic director at private members’ club Maison Estelle, which teamed up with Kamalaya Koh Samui for a four-day Cultivating Resilience retreat last year.

“In essence, the pursuit of resilience is not only about bouncing back but also about moving forward with purpose. Now, more than ever, it is essential to cultivate resilience, drawing strength from within to maintain harmony.”

Contrast Recovery and Dark Retreats

This is mirrored in trends #26 and #89, which highlight the rise in popularity of Dark Retreats and Contrast Recovery, where healing involves stress (thermal or sensory) to build tolerance.

Darkness retreats are a modern iteration of the ancient practice of prolonged meditation. Participants often journey to remote locations to spend an average of three days in complete darkness and silence.

A growing segment of wellness travel, Scott Berman, founder of Sky Cave Retreats in Oregon, said that demand is rising because: “People are overstimulated and burned out. What they want are real, vulnerable, intimate experiences.”

Contrast therapy taps into a similar need, offering recovery for both body and mind while promoting resilience, connection, and longevity.

Changing metrics of success

Trends #79 and #84, Wellbeing Status and Joyspans, reveal that the way we measure status is changing as longevity goals shift from lifespan to joyspan.

VML data reveals a third of people state they would like to have more joy in their life. The concept of joyspan points to how people’s experience of life is just as important as longevity – the goal is no longer just to live to 100, but to live with vitality and purpose.

In the same vein, competitive and collaborative wellness is emerging as the latest status symbol and good health has become the ultimate signifier of status.

Other growing wellness niches mentioned in the report include the rise in personalised, data-driven beauty longevity tech (trend #73) and social health (trend #82), which is emerging as a critical pillar in the new wellness paradigm.

From Rewilding Male Kinship (trend #07) to Heartbreak Healing (trend #88) and Immersive Wellness (trend #86), the report predicts the wellness industry will continue to build the infrastructure for human connection, recognising that a community is the most effective medicine of all.

The full report can be accessed HERE.

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