This 32-year-old earns Rs 14 lakh a month by scratching people’s backs

A one-hour session costs about 300 yuan (roughly Rs 4,200). Employees use specially designed pointed nails to gently scratch customers, who can also tell them which areas they want the staff to concentrate on.

The unusual treatment is positioned as a way to relax and potentially help customers sleep better. The experience can also be surprisingly playful, with some customers laughing when particularly sensitive parts of the body are scratched.

For Zhang, building the business required considerably more work than simply teaching people how to scratch. Since he could not find an established model for such a service in China, he spent time researching the human body and developing techniques that could be taught to employees and delivered consistently.

“In first-tier cities, people generally experience high levels of stress. As a result, this service is in great demand,” Zhang said.

The service has attracted both men and women, although men currently form the larger share of customers. Zhang said around 70 per cent of his clientele are men, while women account for about 30 per cent.

He also claims the experience has convinced many customers to return. “Some customers have said our service is more relaxing than a massage, leading to a strong base of returning clients,” he said.

According to Zhang, both outlets have already reached their break-even point and are now turning a profit. The idea itself came from a seemingly ordinary social media video. Last year, Zhang came across a short clip showing a woman scratching her husband’s back. Reactions to the video caught his attention: several people in the comments said they would actually pay someone to do the same for them.

That made Zhang wonder whether something as simple as scratching an itch could be developed into a professional service.

There was also a personal connection. Zhang recalled how his father used to scratch his back when he was a child, something he associated with comfort and falling asleep. That childhood memory later became another part of the inspiration for Suma.

Instead of immediately opening a shop, Zhang spent time figuring out how the experience could be made into a structured service. He researched different areas of the body, experimented with techniques, and worked on ways to make the sessions consistent for customers.

Now, he has much bigger plans. Zhang hopes to open 100 itch-scratching stores across China and wants the service to become more than an unusual novelty.