A GROWING number of companies are tweaking their business plans to cater to baby boomers as Singapore's population, one of the fastest-ageing in the world, gets greyer.
In particular, spas, personal trainers and travel agencies are collecting data on the 50-plus crowd and offering soon-to-be seniors special deals on everything from massages to European vacations to muscle conditioning.
Retail management lecturer Emiline Lee, from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, thinks that this is the start of a new trend.
'The population in Singapore is getting older and companies are starting to realise that this segment cares about their well-being and has the spending power to act on it. So companies are putting in more effort in this area.'
By 2030, one million Singaporeans will be over 65, triple the number today.
The greying will concentrate an unprecedented amount of wealth in the hands of older generations. Research by credit card company Mastercard projects that spending by seniors here will hit US$11 billion (S$16.4 billion) by 2015, up from US$4 billion in 2005.
A Straits Times check with 15 spas, travel agencies and personal trainers found that 12 have seen the number of older customers increase by up to 50 per cent over the past year.
Local spa chain Aspara, which has seven outlets, is looking to tap into the silver market. The company has spent the past year collecting data on the preferences of this demographic and has created a string of treatments to ease joint pain.
Owner Peter Sng, also the president of the International Spa Association, estimates that about 12 per cent of his 4,000 daily customers fall into the 50-plus age group. This is up from only 5 per cent three years ago.
He also expects his spa chain to rake in an additional $1 million in revenue from this market over the next three years.
Travel agency JP International Travel has come up with over 10 new packages for those aged 50 and older in the past month. These tours include extras such as taichi classes and tofu dishes for the health-conscious.
Even personal trainer Chua Ping Wei, 25, is now training 50 per cent more people from the 50-plus age group than she did last year.
To cater to them, she has taken classes in how to handle such clients, and has added treatments such as joint flexibility to her repertoire.
The 50+ market is big enough for some 100 companies to get together to show off their products for the age group on Jan 10-11 at Suntec Convention Centre. The event will include offers on everything from personal finance to travel.
'The profile of older people is changing,' said the chairman of the Council for Third Age, Mr Gerard Ee. 'This new wave comprises the baby boomers, who have a lot of purchasing power - much more than the elderly of two decades ago. They are also more educated and are attracted to more sophisticated offerings.'
Mr Pek Choon Seng, 57, is glad that companies are taking notice of customers like him.
The father of three grown children travels about twice a year and spends about $400 a month on a gym membership, health supplements and reflexology sessions.
He said: 'I think it is time they started tailoring products to suit our needs. People like me have saved up all our lives for retirement - now it's just a matter of what we spend it on.'
This article was first published in The Straits Times on December 15, 2008.
