Weight Watchers’ Profits Drop Amid Wellness Rebrand
- slingshotmagazine
- Mar 7, 2019
- 2 min read
Updated: Mar 10, 2019
by Molly Long
Diet industry heavyweight Weight Watchers has had a disappointing start to 2019. The company experienced a loss of some 28 points on the US Stock Exchange at the end of last month, and as expected, the plummet has caused much discontent among shareholders. CEO Mindy Grossman has promised a ‘course correction’.
The news comes in the midst of the brand’s ‘wellness’ overhaul, which began last year. Responding to the changing landscape of the industry, which is increasingly turning away from traditional, restrictive diets, Weight Watchers has been reimagined, supposedly aiming to “become the world’s wellness partner”.
But whilst the diet empire - which is part-owned by talk show legend Oprah - is looking to a positive future, it has not been shy of controversy in the past. In recent years, the brand has riled the public on a number of occasions, not least with their stunt last year promoting free memberships for teenagers.
In an investigation published in Slingshot, specialist eating disorder psychologist Dr. Georgina Heath said the move was a disingenuous and dangerous marketing ploy from the company. “It’s so well documented that with puberty comes weight fluctuation.
“By targeting teens with free memberships, Weight Watchers planted a seed. Getting involved in young lives early on, makes it more likely kids will come back to the programme as fully paying adults further down the line.”
With questionable incidents in its past, it stands to reason that some are skeptical about Weight Watchers’ ability to reinvent itself as a big player in wellness. As many wellness brands have already found success carefully cultivating a glamourous, ‘Instagrammable’ aesthetic, coming into the game with baggage may prove to be a difficult step for Weight Watchers to overcome.
To read Molly’s investigation into the diet industry and ‘wellness’, pick up a copy of Issue 1.
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