Niches in the elderly care market
With skewed demographics of concern for almost every aspect of the Japanese economy, marketing to the elderly seems to be one of the few sectors guaranteed to expand in coming decades. Care for the growing legions of elderly Japanese is creating opportunities. European and domestic companies can develop products and services for this market that will also be exported to other regions expecting similar demographic trends. A wide range of needs must be met, demanding a diverse range of products and services.
One company that foresaw the drastic changes now underway, and shifted its business model accordingly, is Tokyo-based Francebed. The company once enjoyed a 70% share of Japan’s bed segment but, as has happened in many industries, was unable to compete with cheaper imports. Seeing this, combined with the anticipated contraction of the whole Japanese furniture market, Francebed took the decision to move into the medical and elderly homecare sectors 20 years ago. The new business lines now account for around 60% of group sales.
“The biggest growth area now is in leasing beds, wheelchairs and walkers for elderly people, which more than doubled last year,” says Francebed spokesperson Kazunobu Kurosu.
“There aren’t many new hospitals being built, so most of the rentals are to elderly care homes and private residences,” says Kurosu. (Of the 30 million over-65-year-olds, approximately five million are covered by care insurance that pays 90% of the ¥9,800 monthly rent for a bed.)
The company also rents out equipment such as massage beds, with motors for the devices supplied by European makers, explains Keiichi Jitsumatsu, deputy manager of Francebed’s international trade transactions.
“The number of ‘active seniors’ is also increasing, so Francebed is targeting that market by developing products such as bicycles that can be used easily by the elderly,” says Kurosu.
Finpro, the Finland Trade Center, has targeted the Japanese elderly market through the opening of three resident-centred care facilities – in Agano City in Niigata prefecture, Saijo on Shikoku island, and Sendai City in Miyagi prefecture. The Finland Wellbeing Centers (FWBCs) are part of a drive by the Nordic country to export Finnish technological know-how and service expertise through a private-public partnership.
“The Sendai FWBC is unique in that, as well as the care unit for elderly residents, it includes an R&D unit to incubate new businesses in the elderly healthcare sector,” says Dr. Hiroshi Yoshimura, who is deputy head of the R&D unit.
“The Finnish approach is different to the Japanese one in its focus on supporting elderly people to live as independently as possible. In Finland there is 24-hour support for elderly people living by themselves, something that will begin this year in Japan,” explains Yoshimura.
The facility is supported by the Sendai City Industrial Promotion Organization and the Development Bank of Japan, and cooperates with local and Finnish universities in developing new services in elderly healthcare. The unit also helps facilitate collaboration between Japanese and Finnish companies, and provides language support to local companies that want to work with overseas partners.
Swedish Quality Care (SQC) is another public-private initiative that has brought Scandinavian care services and products to Japan. The company’s most successful service here involves a range of simplified musical instruments that are used to stimulate the elderly (though they can also be used by children or those affected by diseases). The instruments include a one-string bass and a single-tone flute, which can be bought or rented by elderly-care homes. The company’s staff visit homes to run the musical sessions, as well as training caregivers in how to do so.
“They work on activating elderly people on four levels: physically, through playing and dancing; psychologically, by stimulating the brain; socially, because it is a group activity; and spiritually, because all music has an element of that,” says Joakim Kautto, head of SQC in Japan.
Ways will have to be found to help the elderly to live safely alone, as it will be almost impossible to build enough care homes for the expanding grey population. Philips Electronics recently introduced a personal alarm system that is designed to help the elderly do just that.
Collapsing or falling at home is one of the biggest fears for many older people living alone. The Philips Electronics alarm consists of a pendant that is worn around the neck and contains sensors that are triggered if the wearer suddenly becomes horizontal. The wearer can also press a button to set off the alarm.
“The signal goes straight to our call centre. From there, relatives or an ambulance will be called, depending on the person’s situation,” says Shintaro Ozaki, senior manager at Philips Electronics’ new Home Healthcare Business division. The system costs ¥3,980 a month, and Philips Electronics is looking at expanding the services that can be delivered through it.
“For example, if an elderly person has just come out of hospital and is having difficulty getting around, they may be tempted to eat food that’s past its use-by date because it’s too much trouble to go shopping. Then they can end up with food poisoning,” says Ozaki. “To prevent that, we are planning to partner with food delivery companies who can be contacted in such a situation.”
Design of products for the elderly is another area that is set to develop, according to Dag Klingstedt, managing director of Ergonomidesign Japan.
“Generally speaking, Japanese manufacturers are relatively unaware of the importance of good design in the sense of good functionality. Designers are rarely involved in the early phases of product development,” he says.
“We think things will change now that the large post-war generation is reaching retirement age. They are relatively wealthy and well-educated, and they are used to using fairly well-designed, high-quality products,” Klingstedt continues. “Compared with today’s elderly generation, who remember the truly poor years after the war, they are much less likely to appreciate a poorly designed wheelchair made in China.”