2026 will be less about trends and more about tuning in to what your own body needs, looking to ancient practices, science-based techniques and incorporating some health tech into the mix
Words: Sophia Charalambous
Ancient Practices
Sun Kyeong – An ancient Korean practice, Sun Kyeong uses the body's natural life force, qi, to restore balance to the body and mind. Practitioner Emilie Weston uses light touch and sound to transmit energy into the body, particularly the stomach area where qi originates- energy that cannot be recharged with food, sleep or exercise.
Sun Kyeong Centre, 47-50 Margaret Street
Massage Geek Workshops – Chi Nei Tsang is an ancient Taoist abdominal massage that focuses on working the internal organs, transforming their energy. Massage Geek Workshops founder Alicia Falero expertly performs the massage, which can restore your chi, or life force. Benefits are better digestive flow and relief from bloating and constipation, plus an emotional detox. Combined with acupuncture to unblock stagnant chi and a buccal face massage, this is a holistic treatment using ancient knowledge.
Charterhouse Clinic, 98 Crawford Street
Health Tech
DG Podiatrist – Detailed data on your gait and foot alignment to create 3D-printed insoles is one of the latest health-tech advancements at DG Podiatrist, the Mayfair clinic founded by Dina Gohil, which offers advanced footscan technology alongside personalised treatment plans. Anyone with foot, knee or back pain, flat feet or high arches should consider this test, which includes a biomechanical assessment of the movement of your lower limbs to look for areas that cause pain.
61 South Molton Street
Hilo – High blood pressure kills more people than any other condition. As a result, the Hilo team has developed a wearable wristband that uses optical sensors to detect signals from your wrist to track blood pressure and heart rate automatically about 25 times a day. The device can stay on during sleep and showering and all the information is recorded and tracked in an app. FDA-cleared, it is a medical device to monitor our own health before specific blood pressure-related conditions arise.
hilo.com
Supplementation and targeted therapy
NAD Clinic – Supplementation is a major growth area in the wellness space – and the NAD Clinic is a pioneer. NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) is one of the body's most important cellular coenzymes, a naturally occurring molecule every cell relies on to create energy, repair DNA and regulate healthy ageing. Mitochondria need it to perform efficiently, and levels decline over time. It is present in almost every cell, particularly in the brain, heart, muscles and lungs. You can take NAD+ via tablets, IV drip or smart pen. The result is less brain fog, more energy and better sleep.
27 Wimpole Street
The Wellness Lab – Alongside treatments from IV drips to lymphatic draining, The Wellness Lab is an industry leader in targeted therapies that allow the body to heal. They include hyperbaric oxygen therapy, delivering 100 per cent pure oxygen to accelerate cellular repair and regeneration; ozone therapy – blood passing through the Ozone machine and being infused with ozone gas for energy; and photobiomodulation using infrared and near-infrared light therapy for pain, injuries and skin rejuvenation. The treatments assist those with acute and chronic conditions, sportspeople and those looking for an aesthetic improvement with a boost to skin.
21 Knightsbridge
Holistic Aesthetic Treatments
Salon C Stellar – A multi-sensory experience, Salon C Stellar is pushing the boundaries of where holistic facials can go. It has launched an audio menu during the sensory deprivation section of the treatment when under the LED light, with tracks created by artists including Roses Gabor from Gorillaz and Yukimi Nagano of Little Dragon. The experience combines ancient practices such as meditation, sound therapy and herbal medicine with lasers, nutrigenomics, LED therapy and stem cell use. The Best facial taps into all the senses, with a Momo kombucha at the end.
19b Beak Street
The Light Salon – The world’s first dedicated LED face and hair bar is exclusive to Selfridges in the form of The Light Salon. The LED machine is medical grade, used in hospital settings to help treat everything from skin to bones. Using this as the base, LED can help with many different concerns. There is a small salon space alongside the treatment bar in the main beauty room, offering more tailored treatments such as Lift, Sculpt & Renewal, which includes hand massage and a microcurrent radiofrequency device used after the hydrogel mask and LED treatment. Hair treatments extend from massage under LED light to microneedling.
400 Oxford Street
