Exclusive | Med Spa USA! How Botox havens have taken over millions of square feet across America

Nypost · 🇺🇸 public United States · May 07, 2026 · 1154 words · By Mary K Jacob

Wellness and Beauty Culture Commercial Real Estate Trends Post-Pandemic Consumer Behavior

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What to know about Wellness and Beauty Culture

How Botox havens have taken over millions of square feet across America America didn’t lose all its malls to the internet.

Claims checked 15

Techniques found 3

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center0%

Right100%

1 source compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

How Botox havens have taken over millions of square feet across America America didn’t lose all its malls to the internet.

Why it matters

Walk into any strip center worth its rent in 2025 and you’ll find the same thing: a med spa where the shoe store was and an IV drip lounge where the electronics store used to be.

Common ground

Now there’s data to back up the rise of wellness facilities in underutilized properties.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Causal Oversimplification, Exaggeration / Hyperbole: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Wellness and Beauty Culture story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Restaurant and bar leasing dropped from 19% to just over 16% in the same period?
How does this story connect Wellness and Beauty Culture with Commercial Real Estate Trends over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/07/real-estate/botox-havens-have-taken-over-millions-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 3 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 90% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Causal Oversimplification 70% confidence

Assuming a single cause for a complex issue.

Why it matters: Recognizing causal oversimplification helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Exaggeration / Hyperbole 80% confidence

Overstating facts or claims to create a stronger emotional response.

Why it matters: Recognizing exaggeration / hyperbole helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 15 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 5

verified Verified By Reference 4

info Single Source 4

help Insufficient Evidence 2

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Claim 1: “Restaurant and bar leasing dropped from 19% to just over 16% in the same period”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 2: “roughly 25% less small-format retail space available today than in 2019”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 3: “against a total US wellness leasing figure of just over 1 million square feet”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The evidence consists of unit conversion tools and general 2008 election data; there is no mention of US wellness leasing figures.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2008 United States Senate elections were held on November 4, 2008, with 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate being contested. 33 seats were up for regular elections; the winners were eligible to serv…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_United_States_Senate_elec…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Illinois junior senator Barack Obama and Delaware senior senator Joe Biden, defeated the Republican …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_United_States_presidentia…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — TotalEnergies SE is a French multinational integrated energy and petroleum company founded in 1924 and is one of the seven supermajor oil companies. Its businesses cover the entire oil and gas chain, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TotalEnergies

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 4: “LA cratered from 130,838 square feet in 2019 to 68,461 in 2020”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence provided consists entirely of square footage conversion tools and contains no data on LA med spa leasing trends between 2019 and 2020.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Square meters and square feet are both units of area measurement used in different parts of the world. A square meter is a metric unit of area equal to the area of a square with sides that are each on…
https://www.metric-conversions.org/area/square-meters-to-squ…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Square Feet to Square Meters ConverterSquare Foot to Square Meter Conversion TableSince one square foot is equal to 0.092903 square meters, you can use this simple formula to...
https://www.inchcalculator.com/convert/square-foot-to-square…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Use this free online tool to convert square feet to square meters. Find the formulas, table and definitions of both units.
https://www.asknumbers.com/square-feet-to-square-meter.aspx

info

Claim 5: “Chicago went from its all-time high of 108,186 to 15,890 [in 2020]”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence contains dictionary definitions and links to medical education/imaging sites, but no data on Chicago med spa leasing figures for 2019 or 2020.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Look up Med, med, or med- in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Med

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Medbridge provides clinicians and healthcare organizations an all-in-one online education platform that provides access to unlimited CEUs, patient education tools, and home…
https://www.medbridge.com/sign-in

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Visit SimonMed at Prescott Valley for advanced imaging, precision radiology diagnostics, and accessible, comprehensive care. Schedule your appointment today.
https://simonmed.com/locations/az/prescott-valley/

info

Claim 6: “Chicago... hitting 108,186 square feet in 2019 alone”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence mentions Manhattan office leasing trends since 2019 and a general story about a med spa star, but does not provide the specific square footage for Chicago med spa leasing in 2019.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Leasing activity rose more than 20 percent in August compared with July, reaching 3.7 million square feet. If this pace continues, 2025 could surpass 40 million square feet in leasing volume for the f…
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/boma-new-york_manhattan-offic…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Amanda’s journey proves what’s possible when passion meets perseverance. From student to med spa star, she’s living proof that your career in esthetics can be exciting, fulfilling, and life-changing. …
https://www.nyib.edu/from-nyib-student-to-med-spa-star-amand…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Square meters and square feet are both units of area measurement used in different parts of the world.Converting square feet to other units of area, such as square meters, can also be useful when work…
https://www.metric-conversions.org/area/square-meters-to-squ…

info

Claim 7: “The four markets combined cleared 360,000 square feet [in 2024]”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence mentions general city characteristics and a specific office lease in Georgia, but does not provide the combined med spa leasing total for the four markets in 2024.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Los Angeles is often characterized by the presence of low-rise buildings, in contrast to New York City. Outside of a few centers such as downtown, Warner Center, Century City, Koreatown, Miracle Mile,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSulTXv2DnE

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Los Angeles. New York. Philadelphia. Phoenix.AH Realty Trust has signed a long-term, approximately 22,000-square-foot office lease with Industrious at its Southern Post mixed-use development in Roswel…
https://www.citybiz.co/article/840845/ah-realty-trust-signs-…

verified

Claim 8: “In 2008, med spas signed leases on just 50,261 square feet of retail space in Los Angeles”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence contains general information about Los Angeles, med spa influencers, and unit conversion tools, but no data regarding retail lease square footage for med spas in 2008.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Greater Los Angeles is the most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. state of California, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardin…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Los_Angeles

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Los Angeles (LA) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. With an estimated 3.88 million residents within t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Confer…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Rams

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 9: “a significant share of the $51 trillion in wealth created in the US since the pandemic finding its way into wellness franchise ownership”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 10: “By 2024, LA alone had hit 217,945 square feet in a single year”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The evidence includes Remote Desktop updates and general LA city data, but no specific leasing figures for med spas in 2024.

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 11: “That same year, the four markets combined — LA, New York City, South Florida and Chicago — accounted for roughly 143,000 square feet of new med spa leasing nationally”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The evidence includes general city information and a 1908 zoning ordinance for LA, but contains no data on med spa leasing figures for 2008 across the four specified markets.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Dodgers

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 12: “Fitness center leasing jumped from 11% to 15% of all service leasing last year”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 13: “Rents on spaces under 5,000 square feet... have risen by more than 30% over the past decade”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 14: “Service-oriented tenants leased just over 50% of total retail square footage in 2025”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found after searching for service-oriented tenant leasing percentages for 2025.

help

Claim 15: “The wellness sector alone totaled $2.1 trillion in 2024, according to the Global Wellness Institute”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found after searching for the Global Wellness Institute's 2024 valuation of the wellness sector.

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.