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Plastic surgery has long been big business in the U.S., but now the trend is sweeping across Asia.

Figures released by the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS), suggest that when population is taken into account, South Korea is now the world’s largest market for cosmetic procedures.

In a bid to change their looks, 20 per cent of women between the ages of 19 and 49 in Seoul, the country’s capital city, admitted they had gone under the knife.

The most popular surgical procedures include double eyelid surgery – which reduces excess skin in the upper eyelid to make the eyes appear bigger, lipoplasty – which uses high-frequency sound waves to eliminate fat – and nose jobs.

While on the nonsurgical front, Botox and laser hair removal remain firm favorites.

Overall more than 5.8 million enhancements were performed in Asia during 2010, while just over 4.5 million procedures were carried out in the U.S. the Economist revealed.

It is believed that the rise of South Korea’s pop music industry is behind the boom, and many patients visit clinics with photos of celebrities, asking surgeons to emulate nose angle or eyes.

One of the country’s largest clinics, JK Plastic Surgery Center founded by Joo Kwon, recently opened a hotel to better serve customers, who spend an average of $17,675 during a single visit.

It is believed that the rise of South Korea’s pop music industry is behind the demand for plastic surgery

An increasing amount of clients are non-Koreans, from China, Japan, the Middle East and even Africa, and minsters believe medical tourism will help boost the Korean economy.

However Mr Kwon warned that young people should be cautious when  seeking such operations.

‘I think South Korea has a very rigorous and narrow definition of beauty because we’re an ethnically homogenous society and everyone looks pretty much the same. It is also related to low self-esteem.

‘I think the situation will somewhat moderate in future as society becomes more diverse. But it will take quite a bit of time until we get there,’ he told AFP.

Last year, the Education Ministry issued a booklet warning Korean high school students of ‘plastic surgery syndrome’, citing Michael Jackson and a local woman whose addiction to plastic surgery left her with a grotesquely swollen face.

But many Koreans remain unperturbed by the risks involved. City worker Seonghee Yang, 25, who is from Seoul but now based in London told MailOnline: ‘I think Koreans see cosmetic procedures as ‘enhancements’. People see it as bettering yourself and celebrities are happy to talk about it.

‘It is worrying that this can lead to extreme cases but if the surgery helps people with their confidence then I don’t personally see anything wrong with it.’

Elsewhere, the ISAPS survey revealed that there are seven times more buttock operations in Brazil than the top-25 country average, and five times more vaginal rejuvenations.

While in Greece, penis enlargements are performed ten times more often than the average, with 592 such procedures carried out during 2010.

For more information visit: www.economist.com
SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2134352/One-women-Seoul-gone-knife-South-Korea-tops-global-list-plastic-surgery-procedures.html#ixzz1t4EP04IL

IN this anti-aging age, perhaps it’s unsurprising that vampires — ancient, but with forever-young skin — are a cultural obsession. Now a cosmetic treatment to fill in wrinkles or to plump up hollow cheeks is being marketed as a “vampire filler” or a “vampire face-lift.”

In fact, it’s not surgery, but an in-office procedure that entails having blood drawn from your arm, then spun in a centrifuge to separate out the platelets. They are then injected into your face, with the hope of stimulating new collagen production. Selphyl, as the system is called, arrived on the booming facial-rejuvenation market in 2009, and is now used by roughly 300 doctors nationwide in the name of beauty, said Sanjay Batra, the chief executive of Aesthetic Factors, which manufactures the Selphyl system.

This year, the “vampire face-lift” has been promoted on “The Rachael Ray Show” and “The Doctors.” It’s also gotten air time on more than a dozen local news programs, some of which presented unproved claims that results will last two years.

Dr. Drew Ordon, one of the hosts of “The Doctors” and a board-certified plastic surgeon, gushed on air, “Vampires have moved into plastic surgery, too, and I’m one of them.” The patient in his segment had also recently had her own fat injected into her face to plump it, so it wasn’t clear that platelets had anything to do with her fresher appearance. (Not that that stopped audience applause.)

Ghoulish as the procedure sounds, some patients prefer the idea of using their own blood rather than a neurotoxin or synthetic filler to rejuvenate their faces. “We all want to look better,” said Joan Sarlo, 56, who underwent a Selphyl “vamp-lift” performed by Dr. Lisa A. Zdinak, a Manhattan-based doctor whose specialty is ophthalmic plastic surgery. But the “less unnatural the better,” Ms. Sarlo said. “What could be better than your own blood?”

Some doctors say that fillers taken from one’s body are less likely to cause irregularities and bumps in thin-skinned areas than synthetic ones like Sculptra Aesthetic. But at this point, it’s hard to tell whether “platelet-rich fibrin matrix,” or P.R.F.M. (the medical term for the golden-hued platelets that Selphyl extracts), is an effective filler for hollowed-out cheeks and wrinkles.

Dr. Anthony P. Sclafani, the director of facial plastic surgery at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, said he’s seen the revivifying effects of P.R.F.M. on cosmetic patients last for more than a year — sometimes 18 to 24 months. (Dr. Sclafani is a paid consultant for Aesthetic Factors, and most of his research on Selphyl has been financed by the company.)

But no national clinical trial has been done to prove such claims. “There simply isn’t any objective data out there supporting the claim of two years,” Dr. Jeffrey M. Kenkel, a board-certified plastic surgeon and a spokesman for Physicians Coalition for Injectable Safety, wrote in an e-mail.

Dr. Phil Haeck, the president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, is troubled by the lack of research proving the efficacy of Selphyl, which costs $900 to $1,500 for a procedure that takes less than a half-hour. “There are no scientific studies, only personal attestations,” he said, adding that he thinks the “creepy” concept is as antiquated as bloodletting to cure disease. “This is another gimmick that people are using to make themselves stand out on the Internet in a real dog-eat-dog part of medicine.”

What’s more, doctors and consumers aren’t clear on where Selphyl stands with the F.D.A. In a YouTube video featuring Dr. John Argerson, a board-certified family medicine doctor who works out of Refine MediSpa in Johnson City, Tenn., tells consumers that Selphyl is a “newly F.D.A.-approved filler” for nose-to-lip folds. And in a December 2009 article in Dermatology Times, a trade publication, Dr. Ranella Hirsch, a board-certified dermatologist, said Selphyl is “a new F.D.A. approved dermal filler.” This week, Dr. Hirsch, who doesn’t use Selphyl in her practice, said that she couldn’t explain why she misspoke, adding in an e-mail that “the lack of clarity between F.D.A. approval versus F.D.A. clearance to market is a key point.”

Indeed. The F.D.A. has not approved or cleared P.R.F.M. derived in a Selphyl centrifuge to be marketed for facial rejuvenation. In 2002, the agency cleared a blood-collection system called Fibrinet, whose platelet-rich byproducts orthopedic doctors then used to speed tissue repair. In 2009, this same machine was born again as Selphyl, and since then, the company promoted it as a way to “reverse the natural aging process.” This week, Shelly Burgess, an F.D.A. spokeswoman, said that Selphyl’s maker would have to file an amendment to get clearance to market its blood collection system in a new way, and no such amendment could be found at this writing.

SOURCE: NY TIMES

Aging Gracefully: Christie Brinkley

Model Christie Brinkley poses inside the Cambridge Theater before her final Chicago performance in London on August 27, 2011. The 57-year-old mother-of-three still turns heads on the red carpet, thanks in part to her spf-rich, all-natural, vegan skin care regimen. Brinkley’s dishing her anti-aging secrets by launching her own anti-aging skincare line called Christie Brinkley Skin Care this fall.

Aging Gracefully: Jane Seymour

Though knee injuries in her late teens ended her ballet career, actress Jane Seymour didn’t let them stop her fitness routine. The feisty, British redhead, pictured here at the premiere Love, Wedding, Marriage in Los Angeles on May 17, 2011, stays slim at age 60 by playing golf and tennis between shooting movies.

Aging Gracefully: Charlotte Ross

Actress Charlotte Ross, 43, glows at the Diamonds Not Fur Gala in West Hollywood on August 27, 2011, just a few months after she became a vegetarian. Ross supplements her meat-free diet with flavored soy products and eats organic whole fruits and veggies. This automatically cut cholesterol and lowered her saturated-fat intake, decreasing her chance of type 2 diabetes and coronary artery disease and increasing her chance of looking this good even longer!

Aging Gracefully: Sela Ward

Actress Sela Ward told USA Today nearly 10 years ago that she could no longer rely on her youthful metabolism to stay thin. But at 55, she looks better than ever at the Summer Soiree held at The London Hotel on August 10, 2011 in West Hollywood. What’s her secret? Three cardio workouts per week on her StairMaster (and never skipping!).

Aging Gracefully: Catherine Keener

Actress Catherine Keener keeps the youthful glow around her eyes and cheeks alive at 52 with one simple trick: moisturizing. Cracked, flaky skin is a sure sign of aging because the skin’s top layer is already dead. For added precaution, Keener says she moisturizes extra heavily in dry climates. She flashes her signature freckles at the DGA Theater in Los Angeles on March 21, 2011.

Aging Gracefully: Diane Keaton

Actress Diane Keaton is “aging gracefully” embodied. She has the same healthy glow and sense of humor at age 65 that had when she starred in Woody Allen’s Annie Hall three decades ago—sans plastic surgery. Posing for a photo in New York City on November 7, 2010, her radiance is evidence that you can age beautifully without going under the knife.

Aging Gracefully: Demi Moore

Besides her signature long, sleek locks, actress Demi Moore, 48, stays looking young by eating a clean. Moore’s raw vegan diet eliminates cooked foods all together and is heavy on fruits, veggie, juices, smoothies, and soups. Here, she lights up the red carpet at the Urban Zen Stephan Weiss Apple Awards in New York City on June 9, 2011.

Aging Gracefully: Kim Cattrall

Actress Kim Cattrall says she shies away from plastic surgery because she doesn’t feel the need to look 20 years younger. At 54, she admits it’s harder to stay fit than it used to be, but thanks to daily workouts and drinking eight cups of water, she still looks like Sex and the City’s favorite man-eater here at Ryerson Theatre in Toronto on September 11, 2011.

Aging Gracefully: Helen Mirren

Step aside Pippa Middleton. Fitness fanatics in the U.K. voted actress Helen Mirren as Body of the Year in 2011, beating out actresses 20 and 30 years younger. And 66-years-young, Mirren attributes her slim bod to walking her dogs constantly, but she’s also a fan of the Wii Fit. Here, the dame smiles for photogs at the UK premiere of The Debt at The Curzon Mayfair on September 21, 2011.

Aging Gracefully: Michelle Pfeiffer

Michelle Pfeiffer keeps her 53-year-old body in shape with daily treadmill workouts (4-6 miles a day). Plus, she adheres to a low-fat diet that doesn’t include wheat, dairy, or sugar. The actress is often spotted in public without a stitch of makeup, saying she doesn’t like to wear a lot of color on her face. Pfieffer’s natural radiance shines through, even under the pressure of the red carpet at the White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington D.C. on May 1, 2010.

Aging Badly: Tara Reid

American sweetheart of the 90s, actress Tara Reid may have partied a little too hard at the tail end of the decade. After gaining extra weight around her tummy, she underwent a series of botched liposuction procedures and breast augmentations. Reid, now 35, looked a little worse for wear when she was evicted from the Celebrity Big Brother house in England on September 2, 2011.

Aging Badly: Courtney Love

Courtney Love, now 47, rocked the acting and music industry when she was in her 20s. Then, she took a hiatus from Hollywood and reportedly stripped to support herself, dealt with depression and anger, used marijuana, cocaine, and heroine, and had a rocky marriage to Kurt Cobain that ended with his suicide. Love is seen here at the Roberto Cavalli Spring/Summer 2012 fashion show in Italy on September 26, 2011.

Aging Badly: Melanie Griffith

Actress Melanie Griffith, now 54, has struggled with cocaine and alcohol abuse since her first divorce in the 80s. She checked herself into rehab and later relapsed when she became addicted to painkillers in 2000. Griffith’s husband, Antonio Banderas, and the rest of her family helped her through rehab, but the road to sobriety has taken a toll on her body. Here, Griffith arrives for the Starlite Charity Gala at the Villa Padierna hotel on August 6, 2011 in Marbella, Spain.

Aging Badly: Olivia Newton John

She’s as adorable now as she was when she debuted as Sandy in the movie Grease, but it looks like Australian singer and actress Olivia Newton John spent a little too much time under the Aussie sun. After years of skipping sunscreen on her neck, the sunspots on her chest are hard to hide as seen here at the opening of The Star in Sydney on September 15, 2011

Aging Badly: Lindsay Lohan

Actress Lindsay Lohan, the tiny redhead who debuted as an innocent pre-teen in The Parent Trap, is now trying to rebuild her image. After jail time and a slew of substance abuse instances, she’s cleaning up her act, but we wouldn’t describe Lohan as a fresh-faced 25 year old here at amfAR MILANO 2011 in Italy on September 23, 2011.

Aging Badly: Kelly LeBrock

Despite denying ever getting plastic surgery, actress and former model Kelly LeBrock is sporting seriously plump lips at the 42nd Annual Academy of Magical Arts Awards in Hollywood on April 11, 2010. Not only that, but she’s let the kitchen cupboard take over her once svelte figure, claiming she’ll never eat another leaf of lettuce again. Seems like punishment to us!

Aging Badly: Heidi Montag

We’re all about anti-aging (in healthy ways, a.k.a. exercise, healthy food, and SPF) but some people go overboard too early. At 25, Heidi Montag took fending off aging to the extreme, undergoing 10 plastic surgery procedures in one day. Here at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on February 14, 2010, Montag looks nothing like the fresh-faced teenager from season one of MTV’s The Hills.

Aging Badly: Brigitte Bardot

French actress and model Brigitte Bardot’s was once known for her beautiful skin. Of course, no one is going to look like their 20-something self forever, but Bardot’s frail skin and hair may have come on a little sooner (and stronger) than usual, thanks to years of hard partying and drinking more than her slim body could handle. She allowed her health and fitness to slip lower on the priority list with each passing year. Here, Bardot supports an Animals Care Association demonstration on March 24, 2007.

Aging Badly: Lara Flynn Boyle

Actress Lara Flynn Boyle has a history of drastic weight changes, which can wreak havoc on your metabolism and overall health. After denying rumors of an eating disorder, her skeletal figure on the red carpet at the 2003 Golden Globes led fans to believe otherwise. Flynn Boyle showed up at the screening of Where the Day Takes You in Santa Monica on December 9, 2010, looking healthier—and like she’s had some serious work done to help reverse the aging process.

Aging Badly: Kate Moss

You don’t need us to tell you that smoking wreaks havoc on your skin, hair, and nails, but Kate Moss is living proof. The supermodel turned actress doesn’t hide her nasty habit. In fact, she lit up on the catwalk at Paris Fashion Week 2011, despite anti-smoking signs. She can still rock the red carpet, but if she keeps puffing, we see wrinkles and other more serious health woes in her future.

Article Source: SHAPE.com

Dr Park Ave is using the latest social media techniques to add over 1,150 new patients in the first three months of 2012.

“Partnering with Groupon, LivingSocial, and SuburbanMomma has worked better than we could have dreamed,” said Dr. Paul Fondacaro, CEO. “By working closely with the social media sites, we crafted compelling offers that are keeping us busy 7 days a week. These successes are proof of the growing demand for cosmetic enhancements, and a validation of our business model. We expect to expand to meet this demand.”

Dr. Fondacaro continued: “More importantly, each of these offers — for treatments such as laser hair removal and Botox — was also structured to maintain profitability. This is a win-win for both our patients and Dr Park Ave.”

While attracting over 1,150 new patients in three months — on a profitable basis — is a tremendous achievement, Fondacaro’s goal is to convert as many of these new patients as possible into delighted, long-term, Dr Park Ave clients.

To better serve new and existing patients, Dr Park Ave is investing in new personnel and a new, customized client database. Joanna Jimenez is now conducting patient consultations, to review all relevant treatment options, and complement any cosmetic services already selected. Not all patients are fully aware of the complete Dr Park Ave product line, including the latest technology in cosmetic surgery such as platelet rich plasma and Dr. Fondacaro’s trademarked Lipo Boost procedure, to move your body fat from where you don’t want it, to where you do. These consultations will help patients get the most from their relationships with Dr Park Ave.

Dr Park Ave is also introducing a customized patient database to optimize the client experience. When fully implemented, the database will be able to track patient activity, even in different Dr Park Ave locations. This will allow it to send out helpful Reminders, special offers, birthday greetings, and more.

“We’re not standing still,” Dr. Fondacaro said. “We’re building the foundation for substantial, long-term growth; and these results are very encouraging for our pending IPO. The future looks very bright at Dr Park Ave.”

About Dr. Park Ave.:
Dr. Park Ave., Cosmetic Enhancements, specializes in Liposuction; Botox & dermal fillers; and other aesthetic treatments. It has two corporate offices; and plans for future franchises. Dr Park Ave owns three registered trademarks: “Dr Park Ave”; “Keep Your Friends Guessing”; and “Lipo Boost”, after Dr. Fondacaro’s combination of water and laser liposuction, creating superior results. The company is incorporated in Nevada, with plans to go public in 2012.

Please visit our website: http://www.drparkave.com/
Follow Dr Park Ave on Twitter at http://twitter.com/drparkave;
and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DrParkAve.
Email address: info@drparkave.com

Offices in:
Franklin Crossing
Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417
(201) 485-8400

74 Brick Boulevard
Brick, New Jersey 08723
(732) 262-5476

And the ex-”Friends” star admits she has an obsession with keeping the years at bay, The Sun reports.

“I’d love to be a dermatologist. I’d be so obsessive about it,” she said. “I’m fascinated by skin, products and lasers. I go on the internet and read all about it. I call it ‘laser porn’.”

Despite her keen interest, Aniston admits she wasn’t looking her best when Men’s Health made the announcement.

“You should have seen me when I heard that news,” she said. “My hair was greasy, I’d just had a facial and my skin was gross.”

However Jen, who is in a relationship with actor Justin Theroux, admits she still doesn’t feel her 43-years.

“I don’t feel my age. I feel young every day,” she said. “I feel sexy wearing jeans and my boyfriend’s T-shirt.”

Newsday • Worth • The Miami Herald • Chicago Daily Herald • Houston Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle • Consumer News Today • Cosmetic Surgery News

New Personnel & Cutomized Database Optimize Patient Experience

Dr Park Ave® is using the latest social media techniques to add over 1,150 new patients in the first three months of 2012.

“Partnering with Groupon, LivingSocial, and SuburbanMomma has worked better than we could have dreamed,” said Dr. Paul Fondacaro, CEO. “By working closely with the social media sites, we crafted compelling offers that are keeping us busy 7 days a week. These successes are proof of the growing demand for cosmetic enhancements, and a validation of our business model. We expect to expand to meet this demand.”

Dr. Fondacaro continued: “More importantly, each of these offers — for treatments such as laser hair removal and Botox® — was also structured to maintain profitability. This is a win-win for both our patients and Dr Park Ave.”

While attracting over 1,150 new patients in three months — on a profitable basis — is a tremendous achievement, Fondacaro’s goal is to convert as many of these new patients as possible into delighted, long-term, Dr Park Ave clients.

To better serve new and existing patients, Dr Park Ave is investing in new personnel and a new, customized client database. Joanna Jimenez is now conducting patient consultations, to review all relevant treatment options, and complement any cosmetic services already selected. Not all patients are fully aware of the complete Dr Park Ave product line, including the latest technology in cosmetic surgery such as  platelet rich plasma and Dr. Fondacaro’s trademarked Lipo Boost® procedure, to move your body fat from where you don’t want it, to where you do. These consultations will help patients get the most from their relationships with Dr Park Ave.

Dr Park Ave is also introducing a customized patient database to optimize the client experience. When fully implemented, the database will be able to track patient activity, even in different Dr Park Ave locations. This will allow it to send out helpful Reminders, special offers, birthday greetings, and more.

“We’re not standing still,” Dr. Fondacaro said. “We’re building the foundation for substantial, long-term growth; and these results are very encouraging for our pending IPO. The future looks very bright at Dr Park Ave.”

About Dr. Park Ave.:
Dr. Park Ave., Cosmetic Enhancements, specializes in Liposuction; Botox & dermal fillers; and other aesthetic treatments. It has two corporate offices; and plans for future franchises. Dr Park Ave owns three registered trademarks: “Dr Park Ave”; “Keep Your Friends Guessing”; and “Lipo Boost”, after Dr. Fondacaro’s combination of water and laser liposuction, creating superior results. The company is incorporated in Nevada, with plans to go public in 2012.

Please visit our website: http://www.drparkave.com/

Follow Dr Park Ave on Twitter at http://twitter.com/drparkave ;

and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DrParkAve .

Email address: info@drparkave.com

Offices in:
Franklin Crossing
Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417
(201) 485-8400

74 Brick Boulevard
Brick, New Jersey 08723
(732) 262-5476

And Joan Rivers – who this week had to dispute reports that she had undergone 739 such surgeries – isn’t the only person driving the trend.

Americans got about 1.6 million cosmetic surgeries in 2011, the second year of increase after a big drop in 2009, according to an annual report from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

“Consumer confidence was up, auto sales rose 10 percent, so it is not surprising that we would also see increased demand for plastic surgery procedures,” the group’s president, Malcolm Z. Roth, said in a statement.

Still, Americans got fewer nose jobs, facelifts and other big-ticket surgeries than in 2005, when they peaked at 2.1 million.

People are going to the same doctors, though, for Botox injections, facial fillers and other forms of non-surgical primping: There were 12.2 million of those procedures in 2011. Plastic surgeons who watched Madonna’s performance at the Super Bowl said it looked like she had achieved great results with just such techniques – after looking a little overdone in the past. (For the record: Madonna has not admitted to having any work done.)

These were the most popular surgeries in 2011:

• Breast augmentation (307,000)
• Nose reshaping (244,000)
• Liposuction (205,000)
• Eyelid surgery (196,000)
• Facelift (119,000)

And these were the most popular non-surgical procedures:

• Botox (and similar) injections (5.7 million)
• Soft tissue fillers (1.9 million)
• Chemical peels (1.1 million)
• Laser hair removal (1.1 million)
• Microdermabrasion (900,000)

Meanwhile, the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery says more people are getting information about plastic surgery from Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites. A better bet: the federal Office of Women’s Health, which has tips on how to stay safe, how to check out a doctor’s credentials — and why some people should not get plastic surgery at all.

Source: USA TODAY

If you look hard enough at the data, you can find manifestations of the economy’s wellbeing just about anywhere. How often parents change kids’ diapers, and sales of everything from men’s underwear to hard liquor have been construed as indicators of the state of the economy.

During the heart of the recession, one sign of the times was that people were scaling back by opting for cheaper cosmetic surgeries instead of pricier procedures. Last year, reports USA Today, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) statistics reveal that there was a 5% increase in overall cosmetic procedures, including a 2% rise in surgeries and a 6% rise in minimally-invasive procedures such as Botox, compared to 2010.

The ASPS’s press release welcomed the news, but at the same time the organization’s president, Dr. Malcolm Z. Roth, admitted that “the overall growth in cosmetic procedures is being primarily driven by a substantial rise in minimally-invasive procedures.”

The way in which cosmetic procedures are rising, then, may be an indication of continued economic struggle, with consumers electing to go with cheaper procedures (chemical peels, Botox, laser hair removal) partly because they don’t have the money for invasive, big-ticket surgeries like rhinoplasty, a.k.a., nose jobs, which were actually down 3% last year.

For that matter, none of the five most popular cosmetic surgeries for 2011 (breast augmentation, eyelid surgery, facelift, liposuction, nose reshaping) grew significantly for the year, experiencing increases in numbers of 5% or less. And in two cases (nose reshaping, eyelid surgery), there were more surgeries in 2010 than there were last year.

44% of shoppers who use daily deals return to the merchants that provide the offers and another 47% of consumers plan to do so, according to a new report from ForeSee.

The research firm based its report on responses from nearly 10,000 consumers visiting the top 40 e-commerce sites in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide last November and December.

The survey also found that while 40% of daily deal buyers were already customers of the merchant offering a discount, 26% were infrequent customers and 29% either had never heard of the merchant or hadn’t bought from them before. The remaining 5% were former customers with no plans to purchase deals again.

The figures show that daily deals can bring in substantial new business, says the report’s author, Larry Freed, ForeSee CEO. “Not only do daily deals spur new business, they also inspire repeat business,” he says.

The report also shows that the daily deal market is increasingly a two-horse race between Groupon Inc., to which 52% of surveyed consumers subscribe, and LivingSocial, which reaches 30% of shoppers in the study. Groupon’s market share rose one percentage point from ForeSee’s last daily deal report in spring 2011, while LivingSocial’s market share increased from 24% in the spring.

In the previous 90 days, half of the surveyed consumers had bought a Groupon voucher, up 6.4% from the spring, and a quarter of respondents had bought a LivingSocial deal, a 13.6% jump from the previous report.

Despite that growth, the number of consumers who say they subscribe to any daily deal service decreased to 60% from 65%. But Freed says that isn’t necessary bad news for daily deal operators because the number of consumers who buy deals is rising.

The number of consumers who have purchased a deal in the last 90 days is up 15.8% from 38% to 44%. “That’s a significant jump,” says Freed. “The bottle line is that while there are slightly less subscribers, there are more purchases being made, which isn’t a bad situation at all.”

Zak Stambor
Senior Editor
internet Retailer

Article Source: Internet Retailer