Many South African men still put themselves last, even in small things like booking an hour for a massage.
The picture is slowly changing for skin and appearance.
Business Report reported in December 2024 that South African men increasingly see cosmetic treatments as part of self-care, with anti-wrinkle injections and fillers the most common.
A 2024 Mintel report, cited by The Conversation, found that more than half of men now use facial skincare products.
Neither source is about spas, but both point the same way: more men are willing to look after their skin and appearance.
Men are still the exception in spa bookings.
A massage for sore shoulders is a good place to start. It is an hour in which a man puts himself first, and that habit is worth building.
A massage is not a medical check-up, and it does not replace one. It can be a first act of looking after yourself, and the check-up is the next.
Dr Juanri Jonck, a Pretoria doctor interested in aesthetic medicine, sees the same shift.
In a February 2026 guide to male aesthetics, she writes: “Male aesthetics is not about treating men as larger versions of women. The goal is a rested, healthier appearance rather than a frozen look.”
Her starting point is anatomy.
Men tend to have a stronger brow, a more defined jaw and chin, thicker skin and a different spread of facial fat pads.
She says the treatments men ask about most are softening frown lines while keeping natural movement, treating hollow under-eyes, and strengthening the jawline and chin.
“Male facial anatomy is distinct, and understanding these differences is essential for achieving natural, masculine results,” she adds.
Injectable treatments need a doctor’s assessment, and every treatment carries risks that should be explained before a man decides.
Patients should ask about the process, the risks and the recovery.
A skin consultation is not a check-up.
But a man who is comfortable sitting in a doctor’s room has already taken the hardest step: walking through the door.
Figures published on Bizcommunity by Securitas Financial Group on 14 November 2025, citing Cansa (Cancer Association of South Africa), Wits University and others, show what is at stake:
Local campaigns are putting money behind this.
The Hollard Daredevil Run raised R780,000 in 2024, which Hollard increased to R1m to fund cancer screenings in under-resourced communities.
Men are already comfortable with looking after themselves. The task is to make health checks feel just as ordinary.
A massage or a facial is not a medical check, and it does not replace one. It does show that men are ready to take care of themselves.
This Movember, that is a good place to start the conversation.
