By Choi Sung-jin
In keeping with global trends, the number of single households in China, the world's second-largest consumer market, is likely to continue growing, a report said Tuesday.
"Businesses need a counter-strategy because single-person households' per capita consumption expenditure is larger than that of multimember households, and the former group is showing a new, individual-centered spending pattern," said the report by the Institute for International Trade, a think tank under the Korea International Trade Association.
Last year, China had 74.42 million single households, 16 percent of the total. And the number is expected to rise because of the increase in unmarried or divorced people, rapid urbanization and population aging, the report said, forecasting it would top 100 million by 2025.
People in their 20s and 30s who have high purchasing power account for about 47 percent of single households in China, it said.
The report presented five noticeable consumption trends of single households by analyzing the examples of Japan, Germany and Korea, where consumption markets have already been formed for single households.
For instance, single households prefer what is small, convenient and efficient. That is likely to increase demand for convenience food, small appliances and small furniture. Also promising are customized service businesses, such as detective agencies, food and grocery delivery and housekeeping services.
Single households are likely to shift from family-oriented consumption to individual-centered consumption. Chinese people born in the 1980s and 1990s do not begrudge spending money on fashion and leisure, the report said. Pet markets, in particular, are expected to grow to about 100 billion yuan ($15.4 billion) by 2017.
Single households also prefer spending online or through convenience stores. About 80 percent of Chinese customers of online and convenience stores are in their 20s and 30s, indicating these markets will continue to grow along with the increase in single households.
"Korean businesses should make strategic approaches by understanding consumption patterns of Chinese single households and fulfilling their demands, as they will emerge as the center of China's consumption market in the future" said Kim Eun-young, a senior fellow at the institute.
In keeping with global trends, the number of single households in China, the world's second-largest consumer market, is likely to continue growing, a report said Tuesday.
"Businesses need a counter-strategy because single-person households' per capita consumption expenditure is larger than that of multimember households, and the former group is showing a new, individual-centered spending pattern," said the report by the Institute for International Trade, a think tank under the Korea International Trade Association.
Last year, China had 74.42 million single households, 16 percent of the total. And the number is expected to rise because of the increase in unmarried or divorced people, rapid urbanization and population aging, the report said, forecasting it would top 100 million by 2025.
People in their 20s and 30s who have high purchasing power account for about 47 percent of single households in China, it said.
The report presented five noticeable consumption trends of single households by analyzing the examples of Japan, Germany and Korea, where consumption markets have already been formed for single households.
For instance, single households prefer what is small, convenient and efficient. That is likely to increase demand for convenience food, small appliances and small furniture. Also promising are customized service businesses, such as detective agencies, food and grocery delivery and housekeeping services.
Single households are likely to shift from family-oriented consumption to individual-centered consumption. Chinese people born in the 1980s and 1990s do not begrudge spending money on fashion and leisure, the report said. Pet markets, in particular, are expected to grow to about 100 billion yuan ($15.4 billion) by 2017.
Single households also prefer spending online or through convenience stores. About 80 percent of Chinese customers of online and convenience stores are in their 20s and 30s, indicating these markets will continue to grow along with the increase in single households.
"Korean businesses should make strategic approaches by understanding consumption patterns of Chinese single households and fulfilling their demands, as they will emerge as the center of China's consumption market in the future" said Kim Eun-young, a senior fellow at the institute.
