The report claims there will be a total 42 per cent increase in the number of people over 60, a figure that threatens to have a profound impact on marketing in Asia, as companies wrestle with brand positioning and relevance.
The ageing trend is most powerful in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea, where consumers are better educated, savvy about investments and typically have fewer children.
"Over half the household decision-makers in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan are already over 40. This increases to 75 per cent by 2021, said The Knowledge Company managing director, Richard Gocher, who is the Asia region representative of New Zealand-based Asian Demographics. "Clearly the nature of the advertising message needs to change to reflect the interests and needs of this older, but nonetheless sophisticated and affluent, audience. The report predicts that the biggest changes will be in the home-improvement, leisure and health categories as they are growing areas of expenditure for older populations.
