WOMEN IN AESTHETIC MEDICINE

HAPPY THIRD BIRTHDAY, WiAM!

Three years from its inception, founder Anna Dobbie considers what has changed for women in the sector.. and what has stayed the same

When we launched Women in Aesthetic Medicine (WIAM) at the Aesthetic Medicine London (AML) conference in 2023, the conversation around representation in aesthetics was still heavily focused on visibility. Women made up a significant proportion of the workforce and patient base, but senior speaking slots, key opinion leader (KOL) opportunities and leadership positions across conferences and brands frequently remained male-dominated. Fast forward to 2026, and some things are starting to show change.

The aesthetics sector has always been powered by women. According to the British Association of Medical and Aesthetic Nurses (BAMAN), the vast majority of aesthetic nurses in the UK are female, while global workforce trends across medical aesthetics continue to show women leading clinical practice, clinic ownership and patient care. Women also make up the overwhelming majority of aesthetic patients worldwide, with female patients accounting for more than 85% of non-surgical treatment consumers, according to some reports.

What appears to be changing now is not simply the number of women in aesthetics, but the visibility of women in positions of influence. At this year’s AML conference, that shift was impossible to ignore.

“As an organiser of conference agendas, I have been really happy to see more women represented in KOL roles, particularly when it comes to live demonstrations of injectables,” says Aesthetic Medicine consulting editor Vicky Eldridge. “This was previously a very male-dominated space, so it’s good to see more balance on stage.”

The numbers back that up. Four out of five conference chairs on the first day at AML were women, alongside two out of four on Saturday. Across the Clinical Excellence agenda, 18 of 26 speakers were women, while the REAL Summit featured 12 female speakers out of 15 on day one. Increasing representation of both professional backgrounds and leadership roles matters. For years, some areas of the sector, particularly high-profile live injectable demonstrations and international KOL platforms, were commonly shaped by established networks that some felt favoured visibility over expertise; now, there seems to have been a turn towards a more merit-based approach.

“I feel we are finally moving away from the old style ‘Select your friends’ model to a more beneficial ‘who is best for this opportunity’ model,” says The Aesthetic Consultant, Vanessa Bird. “Maybe that’s why we see more women in prominent positions, on stage and in print?”

Nurse practitioner and chair of BAMAN Amy Bird agrees: “There is definitely a shift to ‘who can do it better, more professionally and with credibility’ rather than just because of who they are.”

That evolution is also being recognised on both the brand and corporate sides of the industry.

“I think you are right,” says Dr Anna Hemming, founder of Thames Skin Clinic. “The chief executives who were promising KOL opportunities in exchange for product sales have moved on, and the companies are realising that KOLs need to actually have key insight into the modality.”

As the aesthetics market becomes increasingly sophisticated, there is growing pressure for educational content, speaker panels and training opportunities to be led by clinicians with genuine expertise and practical experience. For many women in aesthetics, this has created long-overdue opportunities to step into spaces where they have always belonged.

But representation alone is not enough. While the visibility of female leaders is improving, culture will define whether this progress becomes sustainable.

“I do think it’s changing and certainly the ratios when it comes to speakers, particularly at AML, were very female-heavy, in a really good way,” says consultant nurse practitioner at East Riding Aesthetics and Wellness, Tracey Dennison. “It’s very important that we bring with it the approach of women supporting women, rather than a divide-and-conquer approach.”

She adds: “I think it’s not only about seeing more numbers but the right approach, the right attitude and the right culture to help everybody to thrive.”

That sentiment feels particularly relevant while the sector continues to rapidly change. Aesthetics is still a highly competitive sector, determined by social media visibility, commercial partnerships and rapidly changing treatment trends, but there is increasing recognition that long-term success depends on collaboration, mentorship and credibility rather than exclusivity.

The rise of female-led educational portals and specialist initiatives has also contributed to this upsurge. Eldridge points to projects such as Menopause in Practice, launched in 2022, which deliberately focus on female expertise and representation, resulting in a sector that is beginning to better reflect the reality of its workforce.

Three years on from the launch of WIAM, the conversation has shifted from whether women deserve a seat at the table to how the sector ensures the best voices are being heard.

There is still work to do. Leadership at executive and board level across some major aesthetic companies remains uneven, while conversations around pay, visibility and business influence continue, but there is an increasing sense that the sector is moving towards a better-balanced, more credible future.

Perhaps most importantly, the changes being noticed are not tokenistic. The women entering prominent positions are doing so because of clinical excellence, educational value and business expertise. For a sector built largely by women, it feels not so much like a trend as overdue recognition.