Japan’s aging trends provide marketers with

stable, large-scale opportunities for years to

come

- Debbie Howard

(This article first appeared in the May 11, 2009 issue of The Nikkei Weekly)

O

ne of the most important and far-ranging areas

to consider when marketing any product or

service in Japan is the sheer power represented

by the huge and growing demographic of its aging

society.

For example, in addition to the 28 million consumers

who are already aged 65 or older, there are 7 million

“dankai generation” members who began turning 60

in 2007 and will all be aged 65 or older by 2014. The

dankai group has been estimated to hold combined

financial assets of 130 trillion yen (US$ 125 billion), or

10% of total individual financial assets.

Meanwhile, another important older group recently

receiving attention recently is the “arafifs” (those aged

from 47 to 52, or “around 50”), representing 9 million

consumers. And right on this group’s heels are the