Products for customers aged above 50 see high sales

Consumer Panel, the latest report from Kantar Worldpanel, showed that in urban areas, products for customers aged above 50 all have seen high sales growth in recent years.

Canned food and nutrient drinks for older people, for example, have a growth rate of 12-13 percent, higher than the 6-7 percent growth rate of canned food and nutrient drinks market in general. 

Of the products, milk powder grew by 19 percent, no-sugar or less-sugar milk 15 percent, instant gruel 25 percent, and diapers by 70 percent.

Nguyen Huy Hoang from Kantar Worldpanel noted that the number of products and brands made to satisfy older customers’ needs for nutrition and health improvement is modest. 

In the past, milk powder was the only product of this kind. Recently, instant porridge and products for diabetes patients have appeared, but they remain little known. 

Also according to Hoang, enterprises don’t include seniors on the list of priority customers. No 1 is children, followed by millennials, those born in 1980-1998 who account for a large proportion of the population, and Z-generation, those born after 2000.

It is estimated that there are 14 million Gen Z customers in Vietnam and their level of spending will increase when they grow up, get jobs and have stable incomes.

Le Thi Thanh Lam, deputy general director of Sai Gon Food (SGF), which holds the largest instant porridge market share, said the company doesn’t target seniors. The images to advertise porridge packages are designed to target children.

Four years ago, SGF launched products which showed ‘for people aged over 50’. However, the information on the package was removed later as retailers did not want to distribute these products. 

Meanwhile, enterprises have been advised to pay more attention to older customers, because the group will be increasing rapidly in the future.

The Economist reports that the people over 60 now account for 12 percent of the population in Asia and will rise to 21 percent by 2040.

Kantar Worldpanel, which cited the US Census Bureau and GSO (General Statistics Office), has reported that Vietnam has 15 million people 55 years or older, accounting for 16 percent of total population. 

Analyses all show that seniors have to face more health problems, and with improved income, they have a higher demand for nutritious food.

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