“Sunset Red” contains the rising economy.
According to the latest forecast from the China Population and Development Research Center, the number of people aged 60 and above in my country will reach 321 million in 2025, and may exceed 400 million in 2032. The aging of the population has brought about changes in the consumption structure, and the elderly clothing market has also ushered in a window period.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently organized the application for the 2022 senior products product promotion catalog, aiming to implement the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Development of the Senior Products Industry” (hereinafter referred to as the “Guiding Opinions”) and promote high-quality senior products. The promotion and application of supplies products, one of the important ones is clothing and daily products for the elderly. So, how should we tap the potential of the “silver hair” market?
Functionality is particularly important
Searching for the keyword “senior clothing” on the online sales platform, a reporter from the “China Textile News” found that the demands of the “silver-haired people” are more demanding than expected. Active and diverse. “It’s not too late for women to pursue beauty even in their seventies or eighties,” an elderly netizen wrote on Weibo. In addition, function, price, comfort, etc. are the most discussed keywords under related products.
Because the elderly population has its own characteristics, clothing for the elderly must be innovative in terms of materials, design, formats, functions, etc., in order to meet the diverse needs of the “silver-haired people” in their daily lives.
However, compared with other age groups, the development of my country’s elderly clothing industry is still immature, and effective supply is obviously insufficient.
At present, my country’s elderly population is growing rapidly in both quantity and proportion. The latest data from the 2021 census show that my country’s population aged 60 and above is 260 million, accounting for 18.70% of the country’s total population; an increase of 5.44 percentage points compared with 2010. According to the “China Aging Industry Development Report” released by the National Working Committee on Aging, in 2050, the consumption scale of my country’s aging population will increase to about 106 trillion yuan, becoming the country with the largest market potential for the aging industry in the world. According to Tianyancha data, as of now, there are only more than 1,800 companies in the country whose names or business scope include “middle-aged and elderly women’s clothing, middle-aged and elderly clothing”. Among them, individual industrial and commercial households account for more than 90%, and middle-aged and elderly women’s clothing-related enterprises established within 5 years account for more than 50%.
As early as two years ago, five departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology jointly issued the “Guiding Opinions”, emphasizing the promotion of innovation and upgrading of elderly products in various fields. Among the five major areas of elderly products, the development of functional clothing for the elderly is listed as the first item.
The “Guidance Opinions” clearly pointed out that in response to the elderly’s functional, convenient, comfortable and fashionable needs for clothing, the focus should be on improvements in clothing materials, fabrics, styles, structures and auxiliary devices. In addition to the qualities that ordinary clothing needs to have, functional features such as moisture absorption and quick drying, easy care, stretch and rebound, and unique structural design are more of a concern. Increase the application of smart materials, photosensitive materials, anti-UV materials and high-performance fibers in elderly clothing, and develop clothing with safety protection, heat storage and warmth functions.
“Design serves needs. At present, there are many application obstacles in the daily clothing of the elderly.” Wang Wenjuan, professor and graduate tutor at the School of Art and Design, Beijing University of Technology, has been paying attention to the design of functional clothing for the elderly and is responsible for many A key scientific research project such as the research and development of barrier-free clothing. The research on functional clothing for the elderly led by her was listed as a key project in Beijing. Wang Wenjuan told a reporter from China Textile News that clothing for the elderly should take into account the behavioral habits of the elderly and the problems of reduced behavioral ability and mobility impairment caused by some basic diseases. “Therefore, my research and development focus has shifted from functional clothing for the elderly to barrier-free clothing.”
Wang Wenjuan noticed that her father needs to carry reading glasses, injections and commonly used medicines with him when he goes out, which is a problem among the elderly. commonality. Therefore, in her clothing design, she deliberately built-in storage spaces in the inner and outer body, sleeves, hats, etc., which not only met the need to carry items, but also saved the trouble of carrying separate satchels and storage bags. Wang Wenjuan also addressed the problem of difficulty in putting on and taking off clothing for elderly people in wheelchairs while sitting, and designed clothing that is both convenient for caregivers to operate and allows the elderly to take care of themselves. On the basis of meeting the functional needs, it also takes into account the beauty and fashion, meets the physical and mental needs of the elderly, and improves the quality of life of the elderly.
With the rise of smart wearable products, the health care functions of electronic products are increasingly reflected in clothing for the elderly. Wang Wenjuan said that comprehensive application-oriented clothing that focuses on technological functions will be the focus of future development of clothing design for the elderly.
Design needs to be more considerate
Since there is potential in consumption, why is it still difficult to stimulate the vitality of the elderly clothing market?
Many elderly consumers feel that the product designs currently on the market are unsatisfactory. “Elderly clothing is too single, boring, and boring, and I don’t want to jump into the elderly women’s clothing circle to choose clothes for myself.” Looking at the market, the categories of senior clothing are single, and there is generally a lack of accurate recommendations for age groups, spanning decades and styles. The mixed clothing for the elderly is particularly obvious.
Lang Li, a lecturer at the Fashion College of Wuhan Textile University, said that being able to buy the clothes you like in the market depends entirely on luck for the silver-haired people who pursue functionality and design. The reality is that due to body size limitations, many elderly people have no choice but to accept the situation as they come, thinking “it’s good if they can buy clothes that fit them”. For example, Lang Li said that as age increases, the posture characteristics of the abdomen, back and bones of the elderly are different from those of the elderly.Young people are different, and they need clothing styles that are suitable for the elderly. This is the shortcoming of clothing design for the elderly. Elderly clothing that is both well-fitting and fashionable is in urgent need of development.
On the other hand, “Old people are generally more rational when purchasing clothing and rarely make impulsive purchases. Moreover, clothing has a long wearing cycle and a piece of clothing can be worn for several years. This is very different from the consumption concept of young people.” Lang Li said that most elderly people have weak spending power, conservative consumption concepts, and are more sensitive to product prices. Therefore, the profits of elderly clothing have been repeatedly depressed. At the same time, functionality must also be met. Elderly clothing has relatively high requirements for materials and processes, and the research and development costs are also high. Considering the input-output ratio, many companies are deterred from the middle-aged and elderly market.
“Pattern making for middle-aged and elderly women’s clothing is particularly labor-intensive and time-consuming.” Chen Mingmei, founder of Samani, a middle-aged and elderly women’s clothing brand from Chongqing, said that during production, styling middle-aged and elderly clothing is more time-consuming. Ordinary women’s clothing can be adjusted from S to L by a few centimeters in waist circumference, shoulder width, etc. However, middle-aged and elderly clothing cannot be sized uniformly. Sometimes middle-aged and elderly models are specially invited to try on clothes. At least 15 pieces of a style are required to be finalized, which requires five people to work for three days.
Beijing Yililan brand focuses on this market space and has made customized clothing for middle-aged and elderly people its biggest characteristic business. By making an appointment online on the company’s WeChat official account, consumers can enjoy door-to-door customized services, which effectively solves the problem of inconvenience for many elderly people to go out and enables one-on-one communication. During the communication, company personnel can have a clearer, clearer and more comprehensive understanding of the elderly’s preferences and needs for clothing.
Not long ago, the 2022 China Middle-aged and Elderly Fashion Week was launched in Dalian, Liaoning, focusing on serving the middle-aged and elderly groups and focusing on promoting original brands of clothing for the elderly. Chi Jianjun, founder of the fashion week, said that more and more elderly people are willing to show themselves and hope to be the scenery in the eyes of others. However, there are currently only a handful of clothing brands that can cooperate with elderly models, and elderly clothing brands prefer to use young models to display elderly clothing. “Only by allowing the elderly to look young and confident can they attract people to buy,” said Chi Jianjun.
The industrial system needs to be improved
The “Guiding Opinions” propose that by 2025, the overall scale of the elderly product industry will exceed 5 trillion yuan, the industrial system will be basically established, the market environment will continue to be optimized, and a A good pattern for the coordinated development of technology, products, services and applications. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology stated that it will effectively promote the development of the elderly products industry as an important part of the in-depth implementation of the “three products” strategy of the consumer goods industry and cultivate new economic growth points.
Li Tao, the founder of the elderly clothing brand “Frozen Age Diary”, has successfully received millions of yuan in angel round financing from Baixiao Venture Capital. He hopes to improve industrial policies and strengthen financing support for the elderly clothing industry. He said that Frozen Age Log is currently creating a database of elderly body shapes, using the database as a support to design clothing that best suits the body shape and aesthetics of Chinese elderly people. The establishment of the database requires more funds. Li Tao said that due to the loss of bone components, height reduction, and spinal deformation, the elderly suffer from hunchback, stooping, holding the chest, and bending the neck forward. The overall shape needs to be completely different from that of young people. This research requires huge human and material costs.
At present, there are many studies and analyzes on the elderly market, which has also attracted the attention of many companies, but there has been little progress in developing clothing for the elderly. Companies are often keen to compete in the children’s clothing and young and middle-aged clothing market segments. It is generally believed that the elderly do not have much practical needs. For example, many people in the industry do not know that “the elderly clothing consumption potential is at least 100 billion yuan per year”. , lack of confidence in the purchasing power of the elderly, and it is difficult to generate enthusiasm for product development. For example, in the clothing market for the elderly, there is a situation where “designers are not interested and companies are unwilling to invest.”
Since 2020, Hengyuanxiang Group has launched the research and development of functional clothing products for middle-aged and elderly people. Chen Zhongwei, chairman of Hengyuanxiang Group, said that clothing for middle-aged and elderly people has been the focus of the group for many years. The group will rely on policy support and use existing funding channels to support the research and development, achievement transformation, service innovation and application promotion of key technologies and products for senior products, promote industry innovation of senior products and increase effective supply. In particular, investment in research and development of clothing for the elderly is encouraged and supported, and R&D centers are strengthened to promote product extension and development.
Today’s clothing market generally lacks uniform standards for clothing for the elderly. Lang Li suggested that we should establish standardized specifications for the elderly clothing market, comprehensively sort out and improve the relevant standard system, formulate and revise a number of key product and technical standards for the field of functional textiles and clothing, and increase the intensity of adopting international standards. Quality is controlled through standards so that the elderly can buy with confidence.
Lang Li also suggested that we should help the elderly cross the digital divide and open up online sales channels for elderly products. “Generally speaking, developing the elderly clothing market is a comprehensive and long-term process. The whole society should form an atmosphere of love and respect for the elderly, and strengthen the promotion and consumption guidance of elderly products.”
</p
