3 Business Opportunities in Imaging Boutiques & Health Concierges

Welcome to Trends, a weekly newsletter with the zestiest business trends and actionable insights for entrepreneurs. 

We live in a longevity-obsessed world of hypochondriacs who want all our body data collected, and someone to take time analyzing it.

The super-wealthy address this by getting their $2500 full-body scans.

But what about the semi-wealthy, who can afford better preventative healthcare than the average person?

They’re seeking out two kinds of services:

• Boutique imaging clinics: Get quick elective scanning for a fixed price, like private ultrasounds, mammograms, or other services offered by clinics like this one.
• Concierge medicine: Pay a subscription fee to have better access to your doctor, with more availability and personalization.

Source: Google Trends, six-month rolling average

Function, a membership-based health startup, raised $53m from high-profile investors like VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, and actors Matt Damon and Pedro Pascal.

For $499 a year, it offers 100+ lab tests for biomarkers including heart, brain, cancers, hormones… all that good stuff.

It seems that many are ready to drop serious dough for enhanced health screening, with a focus on accessibility, personalization, and transparentpricing.

We got some ideas to help you cash in on that demand:

1. Start A Boutique Imaging Clinic

Current boutiques largely serve expecting parents (prenatal ultrasounds) — but there’s an opportunity to start one that covers other health areas, such as:

• DEXA scan (for bone density, 147k searches/mo. globally, per Ahrefs)
• Coronary calcium scan (5.8k/mo.)
• Vascular ultrasound (3.6/mo.)

Partner with a certified imaging or healthcare professional (if you aren’t one yourself), and build or invest in a cost-effective yet patient-first imaging clinic.

You’d still have the upfront costs of a few high-quality machines, 1-2 licensed techs, and accreditation fees. But you can save on a compact space with budget-friendly boutique lighting, decor, and furniture to amplify comfort.

My friend Ben (editor of The Hustle) had a coronary calcium scan, and in his words, “It felt more like I was in a Big Tech office rather than a doctor's office… I felt like a king.”

Source: One Medical

Not into the medical stuff? A small idea could be to help design/decorate these clinics, or sell furniture, plants and artworks to liven up their space.

2. Help Concierge Doctors Match Patient Expectations

With concierge medicine disrupting traditional primary care, many physicians find themselves needing to adapt.

You can help them with various aspects of their practice, such as:

🧮 Pricing consultant: Concierge medicine can be expensive, and not every doctor knows how to set the right price. They need help with a pricing strategy that works for their practice, and patient makeup. You can also consult on other membership benefits for long-term patients.

⭐️ CX expert: When paying a retainer fee, patients could be expecting a higher level of care from their doctors. You can help upgrade their tech stack, or train their staff to deliver a premium experience for patients.

3. AI picks and shovels

Investors are getting LLM fatigue, but they’re still backing the “picks and shovels” that make AI more easily accessible to folks.

And medical imaging offers prime ground for that.  

Source: Precedence Research

A slew of startups that got funded (like Flywheel, Gradient Health, and Qure.ai) focus on the data piece of AI imaging, or improving radiologist efficiency.

As the use of AI in medical imaging increases, we could see these ideas become reality:

👉 A patient-focused newsletter updating them on advancements in medical AI, and letting them know what it means to them in layman's terms (clinics and doctors can advertise in it)

👉 Upskilling webinars/courses for doctors on how to communicate new tech to their patients, or ease their concerns with AI

👉 Certification programs and career placement services for those who hadn’t considered a career as a medical lab technician, but now have interest because of the new technology

*Disclaimer: We’re business writers who cover business opportunities, NOT imaging, medical, HIPAA, or legal experts. This piece is NOT the same as legal or medical advice. You should always consult your own council and research on your area’s laws and regulations when stepping into a new business area.