This growing silver industry in the Republic’s ageing society, which has strong echoes of childhood, banks on a heavy dose of nostalgia and heritage. SINGAPORE – The demand is rising for senior-friendly toys and games in Singapore, with some aimed at engaging persons with dementia. This growing silver industry in the Republic’s ageing society, which has strong echoes of childhood, banks on a heavy dose of nostalgia and heritage.
Think jigsaw puzzles with traditional trishaws and kacang puteh sellers; word search puzzles with Singlish terms; or dominoes with images of ang ku kueh confections. Memory games, building blocks, fidget spinners and dolls also figure. Ms Carrie Chan, 59, co-founder of toy business KYDZ International, located in Bukit Merah, says that sales of senior-friendly games and toys, many of which she designed herself, have increased.
Ten years ago, such products constituted 20 per cent of her total sales. This figure is now about 40 per cent, she says, declining to provide exact numbers. She started designing senior-friendly games when the staff of a geriatric ward at a local hospital approached her to customise toys to reflect Singaporean culture.
“They wanted the images to be respectful of the elderly, and not cartoonish like Mickey Mouse. A lot of imported games and puzzles then showed wintry Christmas scenes or pictures of Thanksgiving, which local seniors could not identify with,” she recalls. Ms Carrie Chan, 59, co-founder of toy business KYDZ.