ALISO VIEJO, CA—The severity of the opioid epidemic is causing people to seek new, natural, alternative medicine and therapies such as acupuncture to treat their ailments, which is causing alternative-medicine tenants to increase their presence in CRE, Modern Acupuncture's regional developer for Southern California Chad Meisinger tells GlobeSt.com. The firm is the world's first acupuncture franchise to bring the natural health and cosmetic benefits of acupuncture mainstream and affordable, and it will be opening its first California location Aliso Viejo in mid-January.

The 1,800-square-foot clinic will be the seventh Modern Acupuncture location in the nation. The company estimates that 150 locations will be open and operating by 2020. Since launching the concept in August 2016, the company has awarded 348 regional developer and franchise licenses across the U.S., and the World Health Organization has named acupuncture as the fastest-growing healthcare segment in the world.
At least 20 Modern Acupuncture clinics are slated for Orange County, but the regional developers believe there will likely be double that amount. Those 20 clinics will create approximately 200 jobs across the state at eight to 10 jobs per clinic.

We spoke with Meisinger about why Aliso Viejo was chosen for the first Modern Acupuncture California location, why now is the right time for these tenants to flourish and what the company seeks in a retail setting.