As one of the segments of the silver-haired economy, senior toys are gradually coming into the public sight.Rebound fitness ball, wrist ball, colourful recovery ball and so on have become hot selling senior toys on Taobao in recent years.Over the past year, the search volume of senior toys on Taobao has increased by 121% year-on-year, and the turnover has increased by more than 70% year-on-year.

However, at the same time of this potential market in the rapid development, there are some difficulties and pain points.How to let the elderly really realize the “the elderly have fun"?

Elderly toys become a new favourite in the silver-haired market

Nine linked rings, Luban locks, fingertip gyro ...... Recently, Nanjing consumer Yin Wang in the e-commerce platform for his parents to buy a few educational senior toys: "My parents are retired, I bought this for them so that they could usually play.It can not only prevent cognitive decline, but also entertainment to relieve boredom."

In some nursing homes or elderly service institutions, elderly toys that can exercise the brain and body functions of the elderly are used in large numbers.In the Liaoxi Community Nursing Service Station in Qingdao's Shibei District, caregivers take out brightly coloured blocks."I need square red blocks, can you help me find them?"Under the caregiver's patient guidance, the old man slowly but accurately got the designated blocks.

Taobao toys tide play industry team revealed that this year, the platform has emerged more production from Yiwu, Chenghai, Shantou elderly toy merchants, and gradually developed into a large-scale industry.Based on the industry judgement and the trend of growth of platform goods, Taobao will establish a new category of "suitable for the elderly toys", and provide separate support and precise operation.Preliminary estimates, the new category will cover at least 20,000 commodities new category construction and operation.

The continuous expansion of the toy market scale, but also attracted many companies competing layout of the elderly toy business, to seize the first opportunity of the blue ocean market.In Zhejiang Yunhe, many wooden toy enterprises have transformed to open up a new track, exploring the new development model with integration of "wood play + elderly health services" , extending the elderly recreation and wood play the wisdom of the industry chain, to open up the overseas silver-haired economy market.At present, Yunhe wooden toy enterprises have systematically developed more than 1,000 elderly puzzle wooden play products.Zhejiang Mimi Zhikang Technology Co., Ltd. chairman Dafei Ma introduced: "In the first quarter of this year, our sales of elderly products increased by 50% year-on-year, many of which were exported to foreign countries."

Toys need to be "age-appropriate" too.

E-commerce platform, playing the "old age toys" label can be described as a variety of products.Zhengzhou citizen Shengli Xie said, a few months ago to buy some senior toys to his father to try, but soon be idle in the balcony: "the old man thinks these toys are for children to play."Shengli Xie pointed out the elderly toys market is currently "embarrassing": the product did not go through the "aging transformation", the actual use of the elderly is not ideal.

Open Taobao shop, many labelled "toys for the elderly" goods are no different with ordinary children's toys , blocks, puzzles, carrots memory game chess, etc. are labelled as "toys for the elderly", or the main focus of the enhancement of the memory of the elderly, or claim to prevent Alzheimer's disease.Alzheimer's disease."Whether it's for the elderly or for children, the educational function is the same."A businessman explained.

In this regard, some people have complained that children's toys have been "transformed" into toys for the elderly by changing their "labels".These elderly toys are not designed according to the characteristics of the elderly, so that the elderly play, either too small, or feel the rules of complexity, and there are too large a range of motion, the elderly use a certain degree of danger.At the same time, the elderly toys offline sales channels are relatively scarce.In the shopping malls, toy counters are almost occupied by children's products.

Experts believe that this type of scene reflects the structural imbalance between the supply and demand sides of the elderly toy market."Many merchants only consider whether senior toys can be sold smoothly, and do not carry out ageing adaptation and application testing of toys at the production process." Delong Song, founder of the brand "The Elderly Have Fun", suggests that the elderly should be taught how to play with toys through a set of specialized teaching methods, while at the same time making them interested in toy games.

How to help the industry break through

How can the industry break through?Delong Song believes that all aspects of society should be widely mobilized to popularize elderly toys and games in various aspects, such as training corporate sales staff to become elderly toys and games masters.

Haiwang Zhou, deputy director of the Institute of Urban and Population Development of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences and vice president of the Shanghai Society of Gerontology, said that the functional design of toys for the elderly should meet the needs of the elderly for health and wellness, physical exercise and intelligent life, and under the premise of guaranteeing safety, it should provide a scene and channel for social interaction for the elderly groups who have a common hobby.

Liguo Feng, chairman of the National Open University Publishing and Media Group, suggests that a "product + service" model should be established, and experience activities should be carried out jointly with the community to lower the threshold for the use of toys for the elderly, and to promote the consumption of family scenes through the medium of short videos and other media.

Many places have been exploring the construction of senior toy parks and senior game parks to meet the needs of the elderly and satisfy their entertainment needs.The Elderly Social Work Department of the Tongzhou District Social Workers' Federation in Beijing has launched the "Play for the Elderly: Exploring New Models for Community Retirement and Grassroots Governance" project, popularized and promoted the "Five-One Project for Elderly Game Rooms" in communities nationwide."It has also compiled a standardized manual for senior games, and trained and formed a number of professional teams of senior game instructors.

The popularity of AI technology may bring new breakthroughs for the industry.Veteran toy manufacturing company SHIFENG CULTURE (002862) said they have increased development efforts to expand the age group to which AI toys are applicable, and further expanding its product matrix to include AI companion products that can also be used by adults and the elderly.

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