The aesthetic medicine market - Brazil (2023)

1.2. The global market

As the market can be defined in many ways, depending on which segments we decide to include or not, the size of the overall market varies greatly depending on the sources used. For this study, we will focus on plastic surgery and non-invasive aesthetic medicine (***). Thus, in the market sizes presented, cosmeceuticals are not included unless explicitly stated.

According to a survey by GrandViewResearch, the global cosmetic medicine and plastic surgery market was estimated at US$ **.* billion in **** and is expected to grow at a CAGR of *.*% by ****. Innovation in the field of aesthetic devices over the past decade has led to a growth in demand for aesthetic treatments. Moreover, the introduction of technologically advanced products such as non-invasive body reshaping systems using controlled cooling technology is expected to create market opportunities in the near future.

Currently, the global market in terms of value is largely dominated by the United States, which has **% of the market share. The most dynamic region is the Asia-Pacific region, which is growing at **% per annum in this market. Latin America, meanwhile, accounted for only *% of the global market by value in ****. That said, in terms of the volume of procedures performed, especially in plastic surgery, ...

1.3 The Brazilian market

As we pointed out in the previous section, Brazil is a giant of the world's aesthetic medicine. Being the second country that registered the largest number of aesthetic medical procedures after the United States in **** with *,***,***, Brazil was the world leader in the number of invasive procedures that same year (***).

This not only demonstrates the strength of the country in the plastic surgery segment, but also the significant margin of improvement it still has in the field of non-invasive surgery. In fact, while the United States dominated this category with over *.* million procedures in ****, Brazil registered only ***,***. In total, *.*% of all cosmetic procedures in the world occurred in Brazil in ****, far behind the United States and its **.*%, but with a considerable margin over its next rival, Mexico (***).

Countries with the most medical procedures World, ****, as % of total proceedings Source: ****

Within the procedures of aesthetic medicine, we observed in **** an almost perfect balance between surgical and non-invasive procedures (***). In * years, non-invasive procedures have grown so much that they have challenged the predominance of surgical procedures: in ****, **.*% of the procedures were surgical and **.*% were non-invasive. This shows the growing popularity of the latter, and suggests that the balance of power could be reversed ...

2.1 Brazilians' privileged relationship with the body and beauty

Brazil is a country where the relationship to self-expression, joy of life and beauty are culturally very strong. Whether during the great Carnival celebrations, where people express themselves without thinking twice, or in the local music (***) for men and the thinner bikinis for women are the norm. Brazilians, therefore, want to feel good about themselves because their bodies are an integral part of their self-expression. Therefore, they would be less reluctant to resort to aesthetic medicine if they thought it would make them happier and the subject is not taboo, as it can still be in other countries [***].

This cultural particularity does not only apply to women. Brazilian men also attach great importance to their appearance as well. In a survey conducted by the Brazilian Association of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Industry (***), **% of respondents said they attach great importance to personal care and are "super vain". This has a definite impact on the cosmetic medicine market, as **% of Brazilian men said they would be willing to have hair implants or liposuction if they felt they needed it. In addition, among those who have done any kind of procedure, **% would be willing to do laser treatments for the skin, **% for anti-ageing ...

2.2 Typology of demand

A. The plastic surgeries

The plastic/invasive surgeries can be divided into * categories: head and face; breasts and body. The distribution of the total number of surgeries among these three categories is quite balanced, each one having about one third of the procedures.

The most common types of surgery Brazil, ****, in % Source: ****

The most common surgeries are breast enlargement (***).

B. For non-invasive procedures

This category can also be divided into three segments: injectable, facial rejuvenation and others (***). Injectables largely dominate this category, accounting for almost **% of the total number of procedures, leaving only crumbs for the rest.

Most common types of non-invasive procedures Brazil, ****, in % Source: ****

The most common treatments are Botox injections (***).

C. The Brazilian specialities

Brazil is the world leader in terms of volume for many of these treatments:

eyelid surgery (***) rhinoplasty (***)

But also in second place for breast augmentation (***) among others. This is a guarantee of quality for people who would like to use this kind of treatment in Brazil, but also abroad, which is giving rise to more and more medical tourism: people coming from all over the world to have access to Brazilian specialists.

2.3 Typology of patients

Without information about the sex of patients in Brazil, we can use the percentages for the entire world as a proxy to have an idea. On this scale, **.*% of people undergoing cosmetic treatment are women and only **.*% are men. These numbers change little if they are invasive (***) procedures.

However, we know the age range of the people in question in Brazil. In ****, people between ** and ** and people between ** and ** years of age were the ones who resorted most to cosmetic treatments (***).

Age range of people who use cosmetic treatments Brazil, ****, in % Source: ****

3.1 Surgeons and clinics

In Brazil, in ****, the number of plastic surgeons was ****, or **.*% of the number of plastic surgeons in the world. This is the second-largest number of plastic surgeons in the world after the United States (***). This means that, due to population differences, Brazil is the leading country in terms of the number of plastic surgeons per capita.

Number of plastic surgeons World, ****, in units Source: ****

The place where Brazilians prefer to do their aesthetic treatments are the hospitals: **.*% of all procedures are done in there. Then come the independent surgeons' offices, with **%, and finally the private clinics, with *.*%.

Location of cosmetic procedures Brazil, ****, in % Source: ****

In ****, there were **** hospitals in Brazil, but they were poorly distributed among the regions. In fact, while there were **** hospitals in the Southeast, no other region had more than ****. The Southeast is, therefore, the most competitive region, due to the fact that it has a denser and more affluent population, but also one where the competition is stronger.

Number of hospitals in Brazil By region, ****, in units Source: ****

This disparity is reflected in the number of surgeons in different parts of the country. While in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro there are respectively **** and *** professionals, ...

3.2 Manufacture of plastic surgery and aesthetic medicine equipment

The production of equipment for aesthetic purposes includes the manufacture of breast prostheses, injectable products, equipment and finally cosmeceuticals. As the aesthetic market demands high entry costs and advanced technology, most manufacturers are in the production of one of these segments.

As the main players in the market are international groups, most of the production sites are located abroad. In addition, local companies such as Silimed have to deal directly with large multinationals such as Allergan.

Each product requires its own production line:

The manufacture of breast prostheses is a process consisting of about ten steps that are difficult to automate ; the work at each step is very meticulous. Most factories are divided into several sections, the first of which is used to process the silicone, which is the main material of the prosthesis (***). The steps are as follows: the moulds are dipped by hand in silicone, then the envelopes are removed from the moulds, the gel is delivered to the envelope weighed to the nearest gram, and finally the prosthesis is sealed with an occlusion tablet. The manufacture of botulinum toxin for aesthetic purposes is strictly regulated. Brazil has only one plant that manufactures botulinum toxin in the country, located ...

3.3 Multi-channel distribution and increased empowerment of end-consumers

Clients seeking cosmetic medical treatment may go to hospitals or other practices in the event that the treatment requires professional intervention (***). However, not all treatments fall into this category. There are more and more processes that customers can do independently, not to mention the entire cosmeceutical segment that customers find directly online or in-store.

We are also witnessing a boom in end-consumers as direct customers of laboratories, but also of manufacturers of devices for aesthetic purposes. In fact, the emergence of cosmeceuticals and "medecine like" products highlights the growing demand for non-invasive and self-care products. Moreover, distribution to the final consumer through pharmacies and parapharmacies has become a strategic channel, as it is constantly growing.

In addition, there has been an increase in pocket or "home device" beauty devices, inspired by the devices used by aesthetic physicians and dermatology practices. These changes in consumer habits and preferences are therefore putting pressure on companies to adapt their distribution strategy to this empowerment and democratization of aesthetic medicine. This consumer autonomy is also promoted by new technologies that allow for transparency of care. In fact, the rise of platforms such as Realself.com, the TripAdvisor of aesthetics, allows patients to exchange comments and ...

4.1 Prices

The price of a plastic surgery can vary enormously depending on the surgeon, the region where you are and the work to be done, among others. However, the Dr. Luciana Pepino, specialist member in plastic surgery by the Brazilian Society of Plastic Surgery (***) gives the following estimates :

Among the noninvasive procedures, the journal Glamour from Globo summarized the following prices :

5.1 Become a surgeon

Due to the great responsibility entrusted to them and the very high technical level required, training to become a plastic surgeon is the medical speciality that requires the longest studies in Brazil. It consists of a standard medical course of * years, a residency in general surgery to become a surgeon and then the specialization in plastic surgery that lasts * years. In all, it is a training that takes ** years to complete.

The law requires that **% of the curriculum be geared toward reconstructive surgery.

6.1 Segmentation

• Allergan plc (Abbvie)
• La Roche-Posay
• Laboratoires Sebbin
• Arion