The economics of thinness ( Ozempic edition)

Will skinny still be desirable when it is more easily achieved by the masses?

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Arriving in Stepford, Connecticut, Joanna - protagonist of The Stepford Wives, a horror novel is dragged to a "workout class" at the Simply Stepford Day Spa by a neighbour. The duo are met by 15 identikit women. Their hair, heights and skin colours differ a little. Their waist sizes do not. Each can be no bigger than a British size 8, their waists nipped in by belts and accentuated by 1950s skirts.

As some describe it, this is where the world is now heading owing to the discovery of weight-loss drugs. In three short years since America's Federal Drug Administration approved these medications, their use has exploded. Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, has become Europe's most valuable company. Eli Lilly, which manufactures Mounjaro, was one of America's best performers in 2023. And celebrities including Oprah Winfrey and Kelly Clarkson have emerged, almost overnight, slimmed down and svelte.

Morgan Stanley, a bank, estimates that as many as 9 per cent of Americans will take brand-name versions of weight-loss drugs by 2035. That is just the tip of the iceberg. Demand for versions of these medications is only growing. On the subway in New York, Ro, a healthcare start-up, advises riders to "skip the shortages" and get access to cheaper versions for as little as US$99 (S$131) a month. Instagram is plastered with advertisements from firms such as hers and eden, which target young people by using lower-case brand names and soothing colour schemes. In September, Kourtney Kardashian, a socialite, began selling a capsule through lemme, her supplement firm, which also flogs vaginal probiotic gummies and anti-cellulite pills.