Why FIGS’ Future Might Be Brighter Than You Think
The easiest way to make money is to ride a trend — when you go with the flow, even slightly, you can leverage it into a fortune.
For example, buying a few apartments at low prices in prime areas during the early stage of urbanization in a major city.
Or, buying Apple stock in the early days of the mobile internet boom.
But the real question is: how do you identify and confirm a true trend?
From my observation, genuine trends share the following key traits:
1. Self-Reinforcing (Positive Feedback Loop)
Once a real trend begins, it attracts more capital and participants, which further drives demand and pushes prices higher.
Take the example of China’s urban housing boom that lasted over two decades:
More people moved to cities for work → housing demand rose → healthcare, education, and business resources concentrated in cities → more people were attracted → speculation and leverage entered the market → rising land prices and easy credit amplified the boom → nationwide housing frenzy → policy tightening eventually ended the phase.
2. Irreversibility (Momentum Persistence)
Once established, a true trend reshapes paradigms, behaviors, and social patterns in a lasting way.
Take the mobile internet revolution over the past decade in China:
Technological maturity (3G/4G, iOS, Android) → user dependency (people found mobile browsing more convenient) → capital inflow → ecosystem solidification (apps, mini-programs) → full societal transformation (everything becomes mobile) → even as growth slows, the trend remains irreversible.
If you firmly remember these two characteristics, they’ll help you identify the next big trend more easily.
In this article, I don’t want to talk about AI as a major trend, because current discussions around AI suffer from two major flaws:
- The topic scope is too broad, and
- Many forward-looking arguments overdraw expectations.
This situation resembles the dot-com bubble of 2000.
Remember back then? Everyone said online shopping would soon replace physical stores.
And indeed, today in China, people routinely order daily essentials on Taobao, electronics on JD.com, or fashion and groceries on Pinduoduo, Tmall, and Douyin (TikTok China) — often receiving deliveries the next day.
But that “today” arrived more than a decade later.
The grand visions of “e-commerce” painted by internet companies in 1999 didn’t truly materialize until around 2013–2015 in China and the U.S.
The promises of that early internet era — buying books, appliances, and paying online with one click — have all come true, but the journey was far more bumpy than anyone imagined.
Back then, online shopping was painful: internet speeds were slow, payments often failed, deliveries took weeks, sellers sent the wrong items, or products looked nothing like the pictures.
It wasn’t until Alipay matured and logistics giants like SF Express and JD Logistics built reliable delivery systems that e-commerce truly became trustworthy.
So, any major technological trend takes time to naturally unfold.
In the coming decades, one undeniable global megatrend will be aging populations — and it’s accelerating.
(Data show that the global fertility rate has been declining continuously since the 1960s.)
Because global fertility rates have been steadily declining, the future population structure will take on an inverted pyramid shape, with an increasingly large proportion of elderly people.
As for why fertility rates continue to fall, I once spent a long time thinking about it. Later, when I read Beyond Feelings: A Guide to Critical Thinking, I seemed to find some answers.
In the book, the author discusses one of the major reasons behind the global decline in birth rates:
Over the past century, as populations have gradually migrated from rural areas to cities, children have ceased to be viewed as economic assets and instead have become economic burdens. In the agricultural era, every child in the countryside was a “productive unit” — many began herding livestock at the age of five, working in the fields by ten, and becoming full laborers by fifteen.
Another contributing factor is the growing emphasis in modern society on personal fulfillment and self-actualization. As a result, raising children is increasingly seen by many as a “constraint” or “obstacle” to individual growth and freedom.
The accelerated decline in fertility has also led to a faster pace of population aging.
In recent years—and continuing over the next 10 to 15 years—because of the rapid aging of populations in developed countries such as the United States, healthcare-related occupations are projected to account for the largest share of all new jobs created, by far.
According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor, the fastest-growing job category last year—aside from government employment—was in the healthcare and medical fields.
The underlying logic is simple: as people age, they get sick and need care, nursing, and treatment. Therefore, the older the average population becomes, the greater the societal demand for medical and healthcare services—and the more personnel the industry will require.
📊 Data show that U.S. federal spending on major senior healthcare programs such as Medicare and Medicaid is projected to rise from 6.6% of GDP in 2020 to 9.2% by 2050.
Since humanity has yet to overcome the natural process of aging, the aging trend will continue inevitably. Consequently, it’s foreseeable that over the next 10–15 years, healthcare professionals will become one of the largest occupational groups—forming an active, expansive community whose scale and influence will only continue to grow.
FIGS: Reinventing Medical Apparel
Now, congratulations to the patient readers — we’ve arrived at today’s main topic. Let’s talk about FIGS, a company that has been quietly reshaping the medical apparel industry.
Founded in 2013, FIGS specializes in designing apparel for healthcare professionals. Unlike traditional medical scrubs, FIGS makes its uniforms more stylish, personalized, and athletic, allowing medical workers to maintain a professional appearance while feeling comfortable and fashionable.
Traditional scrubs have clear drawbacks: poor fit, discomfort, and limited color options (mostly black, white, or blue), severely lacking in personality. Starting in the 1990s and 2000s, U.S. hospitals gradually began allowing medical workers to choose their own scrub colors and styles. FIGS’ mission is essentially to “Lululemon-ize” medical uniforms—enhancing the professional experience of healthcare workers while amplifying their influence and voice.
Community-Driven Branding
FIGS’ growth path resembles Lululemon’s, leveraging a bottom-up marketing strategy that spreads brand influence through community culture. Unlike traditional brands that depend on celebrity endorsements, FIGS doesn’t sign any celebrities. Instead, it focuses on sponsoring medical influencers on social media—building strong brand loyalty and powerful word-of-mouth within the healthcare community.
Operating through a Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) model, FIGS initially adopted a fully virtual strategy, selling exclusively via its website and mobile app with no physical stores. Only after achieving strong profitability and cash flow did the company begin opening limited “experience stores” in major cities.
On Instagram, FIGS now boasts over 1.3 million followers, far ahead of its competitors. Many top nurse influencers are also brand partners.
The Power of Female Consumers
In the U.S., the gender ratio among nurses is roughly 1 male to 15 females. In any fashion brand where women make up over 80% of loyal customers, purchasing power tends to be extremely strong. Women generally spend more on clothing than men, driven by higher attention to appearance and emotional motivation. As the saying goes, “Win the female market, win the world.”
Moreover, in female-dominated industries, comparison and imitation behaviors amplify consumption—when one person wears something new, others quickly follow.
Why FIGS’ Growth Is Structural
Within the healthcare ecosystem, FIGS benefits from a closed-loop diffusion effect of brand awareness:
- High exposure density.
A doctor or nurse interacts daily with dozens of colleagues and patients, meaning a single uniform can be seen 300–500 times per week—a level of exposure unmatched in most workplaces. - Contrast enhancement.
In visually monotonous environments (e.g., white coats, sterile walls), branded scrubs stand out sharply. Neuromarketing studies show that brand recall in such environments increases by 42%. - Trust transfer effect.
When a respected medical professional wears a particular brand, observers subconsciously perceive that brand as more credible and trustworthy. Consumer neuroscience experiments show that brand favorability rises by 57% and purchase intent by 33% through this trust transfer—especially among patients.
Brand Stickiness and Secondary Markets
Beyond these psychological factors, FIGS also produces high-quality, durable, and well-designed products. While studying social media patterns, I discovered thriving second-hand FIGS trading groups on Meta platforms—evidence of a highly engaged fan base and strong product stickiness. The existence of resale markets further reflects FIGS’ long product life cycle and resale value.
The Broader Apparel Trend
Another noticeable trend in recent years: the decline in popularity of formalwear and denim.
This shift shows that as people prioritize comfort and versatility, the boundary between workwear and casualwear is blurring. Increasingly, individuals prefer clothes that are both functional and fashionable. If FIGS follows a trajectory similar to Lululemon’s, it could eventually expand into the athleisure and lifestyle apparel markets.
The Long-Term Opportunity
In many countries, hospitals are already loosening dress codes to attract and retain younger staff, allowing medical professionals to express personal style through colorful, patterned, or branded uniforms.
The healthcare sector is also recession-proof — regardless of economic cycles, medical services remain essential. Even during the 2008 financial crisis, global healthcare spending grew 4.1%, while global GDP fell 0.1%. With aging populations driving sustained demand, this trend shows no sign of reversal.
📈 As of October 22, 2025, FIGS’ stock closed at $8.17.
Since aging is a slow but powerful structural trend, I view FIGS as a long-term investment—a bet on demographic inevitability rather than short-term hype. Over the next 7–10 years, I have no intention of changing this value-driven strategy—unless a major event such as a founder or executive shake-up occurs.
In the end, FIGS isn’t just a bet on a company — it’s a reflection of how demographics, psychology, and design converge to shape the next era of healthcare. Trends may shift, but the need for dignity, comfort, and identity at work never does.
Published on October 22, 2025.
