TOKYO, May 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — This report presents an overview of our business performance and key performance indicators (KPIs) for the first quarter of 2026 (January–March 2026). It also highlights trends over the past five quarters (2025Q1–2026Q1) to provide investors with a broader perspective. Data includes salons with comparable financial and customer metrics.
1. Salon Operation Business
In 2026Q1, our salon business recorded an Average Revenue Per Customer of 7,822 JPY (+7.7% YoY), exceeding the Japanese industry average of 4,806 JPY by approximately 3,016 JPY.(*1) This performance reflects the strength of our service offering, supported by our training infrastructure and an educational curriculum refined over 25 years.
Over 120 diverse training courses
(Technical skills, Hospitality, Knowledge, Management)
Continuous training system even after therapist debut
Strategy Update: Hybrid Staffing Model
In addition, to support sustainable growth in our store operations and further enhance service quality, we have been strategically upgrading the working styles of our store staff (therapists) since 2025. In addition to traditional employment models centered on hourly wages and fixed salaries, we have been promoting the adoption and expansion of a professional contractor (independent contractor) model.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
| Metric | 2025Q1 | 2025Q2 | 2025Q3 | 2025Q4 | 2026Q1 | YoY Change | |
| Number of Salons (*2) | 308 | 304 | 299 | 292 | 287 | -21 Salons | |
| Total Customers (*3) | 223k | 234k | 232k | 208k | 192k | -13.9% | |
| Revenue Per Customer (*4) | 7,263 | 7,259 | 7,560 | 7,830 | 7,822 | +7.7% | |
| Repeat Ratio (*5) | 77.1% | 77.1% | 76.8% | 78.3% | 78.0% | +0.9pt | |
| Operating Ratio (*6) | 45.3% | 45.9% | 46.1% | 43.8% | 44.0% | -1.3pt | |
*(1) Industry Average: Weighted average calculated based on data published by Recruit Co., Ltd., Hot Pepper Beauty Academy, “Beauty Census 2024 First Half (Relaxation Salon Edition) Report.”
*(2) Number of Salons: Total number of directly operated and franchise salons at the end of each quarter.
*(3) Total Customers: Number of customers visiting the salons.
*(4) Revenue Per Customer: Average revenue calculated by dividing total sales by the number of customers.
*(5) Repeat Ratio: Ratio of repeat customers to total customers.
*(6) Operating Ratio: Ratio of treatment time to total working hours of therapists (excluding break times).
The average number of stores included in the data aggregation for each quarter was 284 in 25Q1, 281 in 25Q2, 276 in 25Q3, 273 in 25Q4, and 268 in 26Q1.
As a result of advancing both the transition to contractor agreements and the hiring of independent contractors, the proportion of independent contractors among therapists reached 45.1% as of Q1 2026, an increase from 29.8% in the same period of the previous year (*7).
(*7) The number of therapists includes employees and independent contractors who worked as of the end of March 2025 and March 2026, respectively, at MEDIROM Wellness Co., Ltd. and SAWAN Co., Ltd.
Furthermore, to support sustainable growth in our salon business and enhance service quality, we have been implementing a strategic update to our staffing model since 2025. In addition to the conventional employment model based on hourly and fixed wages, we have been expanding the use of professional contractor (independent contractor) arrangements. As a result, independent contractors accounted for 53% of our total workforce as of the end of the first quarter.
This model introduces a performance-based compensation structure without fixed salary caps, allowing therapists to better align their earnings with their efforts. We believe this approach supports higher motivation and contributes to improved retention. Through this hybrid staffing structure, we aim to build a foundation that enables diverse talent to thrive over the long term while maintaining stable KPI performance.
Looking ahead, we plan to continue to optimize this hybrid staffing model to further enhance therapist earnings. At the same time, we aim to strengthen our high-value, high-margin business model and enhance our corporate value over the medium to long term.
2. World ID
World ID is a global digital identity protocol developed by Tools for Humanity, co-founded by Sam Altman and Alex Blania, to provide “Proof of Personhood” in the age of AI.
In February 2026, we commenced a strategic partnership with Tools for Humanity under a Master Service Agreement. As part of this initiative, we have continued to deploy Orb devices primarily at Re.Ra.Ku® locations, resulting in approximately 31,000 total verifications as of the end of 2026Q1.
The decrease in authentication numbers during the first quarter was mainly due to the January–March period being a seasonal slow period, combined with a lower number of business operating days.
World ID Verification Trends
| Metric | 2025Q1 | 2025Q2 | 2025Q3 | 2025Q4 | 2026Q1 |
| New Verifications (*8) | – | 108 | 6,604 | 13,873 | 10,552 |
*(8) New Verifications: Number of first-time World ID verifications recorded in each quarter.
World ID Promotion Event Highlights The “Free 5-Minute Shoulder Massage” at the storefront has become a popular attraction.
3. HealthTech Business (Lav®)
Our HealthTech division offers “Lav®,” a fully remote Specified Health Guidance service delivered through web-based interviews and app-based chat functions.
Therapists from our Re.Ra.Ku® salons also serve as Lav® coaches, creating operational synergies across our businesses. This structure reduces the need for external recruitment and provides additional income opportunities for therapists, contributing to a high-margin business model.
As of 2026Q1, we serve 106 health insurance providers, with cumulative users reaching 13,226.
Specified Health Guidance is a support program designed to prevent lifestyle-related diseases associated with factors such as unbalanced diet, lack of sleep, insufficient exercise, smoking, and stress.
Based on the results of “Specified Health Checkups”—health examinations focused on metabolic syndrome for individuals aged 40 to 74—specialized staff, including public health nurses and registered dietitians, provide guidance to help high-risk individuals review and improve their lifestyle habits. Since April 2008, medical insurers, including National Health Insurance and employee health insurance providers, have been required to implement both “Specified Health Checkups” and “Specified Health Guidance.”
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has set national targets of at least 70% for health checkup participation and 45% for health guidance participation among eligible individuals. However, actual rates for fiscal year 2021 were 56.5% and 24.6%, respectively, indicating significant room for future market expansion.
The adoption of ICT in Specified Health Guidance has been increasing steadily, and in recent years—partly driven by the COVID-19 pandemic—the adoption rate has exceeded 50% (according to the Japan Health Guidance Association).
We have been operating in the Specified Health Guidance business within the ICT sector since fiscal year 2019. As of the end of March 2026, we have established partnerships with 106 insurers, and the cumulative number of users has surpassed 13,000, reaching a total of 13,226.
Furthermore, we are expanding our business to meet the diversifying needs of health insurance associations by seeking to grow our new contracts for voluntary lifestyle improvement programs. These programs target younger individuals under the age of 40, extending beyond the standard age range for Specified Health Guidance (40 and older).
The coaches responsible for Lav® program guidance are primarily comprised of active therapists from our salon business (Re.Ra.Ku® Group). By establishing a system where existing group staff can participate as coaches, we reduce new recruitment costs for coaches and can further our efforts to achieve a profitability model. Consequently, therapists who serve as coaches receive higher compensation, which effectively boosts their overall income.
Since this coaching role is exclusively available to therapists currently working at Re.Ra.Ku®, the model encourages long-term retention, particularly among high-earning therapists. Our core Re.Ra.Ku® business and the Lav® business create close internal synergies, and this overall business model structure serves as one of our key competitive advantages.
HealthTech KPI Trends
| Metric | 2025Q1 | 2025Q2 | 2025Q3 | 2025Q4 | 2026Q1 | YoY Change | |
| Insurers | 98 | 101 | 101 | 102 | 106 | +8.2% | |
| Cumulative Users (*9) | 9,701 | 10,651 | 11,234 | 12,398 | 13,226 | +3,525 | |
*(9) Cumulative Users: The cumulative number of eligible individuals who have started using Specified Health Guidance. The Year-on-Year (YoY) Change/Increase reflects the difference in the cumulative total compared to the 2025 Q1 level.
Forward-Looking Statements Regarding MEDIROM
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may include estimates or expectations about MEDIROM’s possible or assumed operational results, financial condition, business strategies and plans, market opportunities, competitive position, industry environment, and potential growth opportunities. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “designate,” “target,” “aim,” “hope,” “expect,” “could,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “believe,” “continue,” “predict,” “project,” “potential,” “goal,” or other words that convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes. These statements relate to future events or to MEDIROM’s future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause MEDIROM’s actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond MEDIROM’s control and which could, and likely will, affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects MEDIROM’s current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to MEDIROM’s operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements in this press release include:
- MEDIROM’s ability to achieve its development goals for its business and execute and evolve its growth strategies, priorities and initiatives, including the full-scale adoption of World ID and deployment of Orb authentication terminals across 3,000 locations, and achieving its targeted number of verifications;
- the MSA being early terminated by the World parties for convenience or any other reason;
- Changes in Japanese and global economic conditions and financial markets, including their effects on MEDIROM’s expansion in Japan and certain overseas markets;
- MEDIROM’s ability to achieve and sustain profitability in its Digital Preventative Healthcare Segment;
- the fluctuation of foreign exchange rates, which affects MEDIROM’s expenses and liabilities payable in foreign currencies;
- MEDIROM’s ability to maintain and enhance the value of its brands and to enforce and maintain its trademarks and protect its other intellectual property;
- MEDIROM’s ability to raise additional capital on acceptable terms or at all;
- MEDIROM’s level of indebtedness and potential restrictions on MEDIROM under MEDIROM’s debt instruments;
- changes in consumer preferences and MEDIROM’s competitive environment;
- MEDIROM’s ability to respond to natural disasters, such as earthquakes and tsunamis, and to global pandemics, such as COVID-19; and
- the regulatory environment in which MEDIROM operates.
More information on these risks and other potential factors that could affect MEDIROM’s business, reputation, results of operations, financial condition, and stock price is included in MEDIROM’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including in the “Risk Factors” and “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” sections of MEDIROM’s most recently filed periodic report on Form 20-F and subsequent filings, which are available on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. MEDIROM assumes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.
About MEDIROM Group
MEDIROM Group operates approximately 287 wellness salons under the “Re.Ra.Ku®” brand nationwide. Since 2015, we have expanded into HealthTech, offering on-demand training apps like Lav® for specific health guidance and lifestyle improvement programs. In 2020, we started manufacturing the 24/7 recharge-free smart tracker “MOTHER Bracelet®,” which is now used in REMONY, our remote monitoring system for various industries including caregiving, transportation, construction, and manufacturing.
About MEDIROM Healthcare Technologies Inc.
NASDAQ Symbol: MRM
Tradepia Odaiba, 2-3-1 Daiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Website: https://medirom.co.jp/en
Contact: [email protected]
Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1cf9428f-cff5-427c-bb4b-354431671f12
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/78f2aa59-849f-4774-923f-936c190f83e8
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7716135e-4834-4e5c-9cf6-bbc1f8c27a55
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/813811db-7d96-403a-a6d3-86af55b8315e
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b48c4330-d9dd-460b-881a-c4b35b4c2dc9
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/49c24fce-259f-4b56-aee2-83f9eca07fa5
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fe2abb98-c341-4bf5-b1fb-488c71fdbffb
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5a5185b6-9b06-4ca1-8f68-cb98917b0d0b
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/54c591b0-9d75-4c0a-9ef0-9d8a614fb86b
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6b089036-a488-4f5d-9cf8-e7a93198e8f8
