Women love to shop. And women’s love for shopping does not fade with age. One Thursday at 9:30 a.m., I passed by a supermarket and saw five or six women forming a line in front of it. They were all around the late 60s to 80s, wearing walking shoes. Some people held their shopping carts, and others held mobility aids. “Why do they come early even to wait for the supermarket to open? ” I wondered. There were no bargain sales at the store. There were no senior discounts for the store, either. When I saw these people again, I noticed they were chatting with smiles on their faces. They did not look tired of waiting for the store to open. When the door was open at 10 a.m., they walked into the store slowly but firmly. I saw the same scene the next day. I wondered again. So, I went to the supermarket to find out what attracts senior women to shop so frequently.
More Than Buying
Shopping for groceries can be a burden but also a pleasant experience. Grocery stores, including supermarkets, in Japan carry a wide range of groceries, including vegetables and fruits, from Hokkaido to Kagoshima. They also carry several packaged food brands so consumers can choose those they like. In-store cooking demonstrations and food tastings give customers cooking ideas and help them taste before they make a purchase. Such products and services are available in grocery stores at any time. Therefore, senior women do not have to go to supermarkets every day to have these experiences. But they go there frequently. Shops like supermarkets offer more than just groceries to senior women.
Shopping for Socializing Opportunities
Besides shopping, grocery stores, such as supermarkets, offer seniors opportunities for socializing. In other words, senior women who live alone or are unable to do social activities meet people while shopping. For example, the women who waited for the supermarket to open met and had chats with other shoppers. In the supermarket, they also have chances to interact with store staff. One woman spoke with a store clerk who offered a piece of in-season apple for tasting. At the cashier, a female store clerk was talking to a woman around age 70, saying, “Hi, you look healthy. But let me help you to move this basket there.” The woman replied to the store clerk with a big smile, “Thank you! It’s a great help.”
Shopping for Physical Exercises
Shopping can be a physical exercise, in the sense of walking to the store or around it. Several women I saw in front of the supermarket were wearing walking shoes, probably walking to the store. That reminds me of a short conversation with a woman in her 80s in the neighborhood: “I go shopping because I need to walk.” Walking around in the supermarket can be physical exercise, too. When I was in the supermarket, I saw several senior women walking slowly, aisle by aisle, as if taking a walk. A woman with gray hair walked around inside the store for more than 30 minutes to look for products on shelves. I don’t think she walked around there as physical exercise, but it did become her physical exercise.
Shopping for Stimulating Brains
A wide range of foods and everyday goods in stores can serve as brain stimuli for shoppers. Compared to watching TV programs at home, senior people have more interactions in stores: seeing and touching new items with their eyes and hands, and feeling the season through seasonal vegetables and fruits. When I was in the supermarket, I saw a senior woman thoroughly examine how fresh a bunch of spinach was before putting it in the basket. I also overheard a conversation between a woman and a store clerk about a mushroom recipe at the vegetable corner. She probably cooks the mushrooms with that recipe at home.
Gender Differences in Shopping Behaviors
Now, the question is about senior men. Compared to senior women, I did not see many senior men in the supermarket. This observation is consistent with what I learned from the Government of Japan’s white paper on the aging society. According to the 2018 Annual Report on the Aging Society in Japan, women aged 65 and older are more likely than men to shop alone. In particular, the paper reported that 70% of women aged 75 and older shop on their own, while 62% of men do. Notably, 51% of women aged 75 and older shop by walking, while 24% of men do. In other words, women have been accustomed to grocery shopping from a young age, whereas men have no such habit. Men probably socialize by meeting people from their previous work, through their hobbies, and by taking walks or playing sports for physical exercise.
Those are the situations of senior people in urban areas.
Challenge: Store Closures in Rural Areas
The situation is different for seniors in rural areas. They suffer from the lack of grocery stores nearby. The decline in the number of stores has been significant in the countryside, where the population has declined while the proportion of older people has risen. “Kaimono Nanmin (shopping refugees)”, seniors who do not have grocery stores nearby, is a huge problem in Japan. There are several local services that try to solve this problem. For example, local communities in rural areas offer shuttle services to a supermarket for senior people. There are local delivery services for seniors, too. However, shopping refugees become a serious issue nationwide. They miss opportunities not only to purchase food and other daily goods but also to socialize and engage in cognitive stimulation. They may feel more reluctant to go outside than before.
Opportunity: Evolving Roles of Retail Stores?
Retail stores have offered not only places to buy, but also other values to shoppers. In the past, shopping streets offered a wide range of daily necessities for local people. Senior people enjoyed shopping and talking with others on the nearby shopping streets. With the decline of shopping streets, supermarkets have taken on the role of providing daily necessities for shoppers in those areas. Now, supermarket chains are starting to close stores with low revenue. So, how can we offer the benefits associated with your shopping experience? It is still an open question.