Unique retirement complex to open in Beijing

Sungin Holdings, a subsidiary under Fosun Group, has joined hands with Australian-based Sapphire Holdings Group to open a novel retirement community in Beijing.

Fragrant Hill Mansion, with a total investment of 50 million yuan ($7.35 million), will officially be put into operation on July 28.

It is located in the Fragrant Hills and will target the high-end market for senior citizens in the capital. Before that, Sungin had built seven retirement communities in Shanghai, Suzhou, Ningbo and Tianjin.

Given China’s fast-growing aging population, the market for this group has huge potential. By the end of 2017, there were 241 million people over 60 in China, accounting for 17.3 percent of the total population, according to Sapphire Holdings Group’s research.

The population of Chinese senior citizens will reach 480 million by 2050. In 2014-2050, the consumption potential of China's senior citizens will increase from 4 trillion yuan to 106 trillion yuan, which represents the greatest capacity among aging people in the global industry, according to industry research.

And that’s why an increasing number of institutions have jumped on the bandwagon. A number of insurance companies and property developers have already developed similar communities for the aging population.

"We don't want the elderly to treat themselves as patients. They are just normal people, and we want them to just feel at home," said by Carol Allen, CEO of Sapphire Group.

Mike Deng, general manager of Sapphire, claimed that they intend to introduce the Australian retirement mode of focusing on lifestyle experiences. They expect that senior citizens there could be treated normally under their effective system of care.

Wang Jiaqi contributed to this story