TOKYO (AP) — Yoshiko Abe is about to turn 89, but that hasn't stopped her from going to the gym every day and trying the free-of-charge makeup course at her housing complex.
“It was really helpful,” she said, all smiles and glowing after putting on foundation and pink lipstick, something she hadn’t done in years.
Japan is the fastest-aging society in the world, where more than a quarter of its population is 65 and older, at 36 million people. In about a decade, the ratio will be one in three.
No wonder the young-at-heart, like Abe, is a growing target for Japan Inc. The market for older people is estimated to grow to more than 100 trillion yen ($650 billion) in size this year, according to a study by Mizuho Bank.
And that business isn’t just about remedies for sicknesses and old folks’ homes but taps into solid consumerism. The growth of artificial intelligence and robotics also offers promise for such services and gadgetry.
Akira Shimizu, professor of business at Keio University, calls them “cool grandpas and cute grannies” who remain sensitive to trends, including the latest luxury and health products.
“They think about the clothing and makeup that express their style,” he said.
From luxury cruises and “oldies” rock concerts, companies are leveraging the fact that older people these days remain active, go out with friends and on dates, so they want to dress up and look good, said Shimizu.
Maintaining one’s looks is good physical exercise because it takes hand agility to open cosmetics tubes and draw eyebrows nicely, and massaging the face gets one's saliva glands going, according to Miwa Hiraku, the makeover class instructor from the Japanese cosmetics company Shiseido.
Shiseido Co., which started out as a pharmacy in 1872, said that makeup is not just good for your physical well-being but also your soul. The company has been holding free makeup courses for older people across the country.
“Putting on makeup works as a switch to turn on your energy at the start of your day,” said Hiraku, who vows to wear makeup even at 100.
“It’s not just about looking beautiful. It’s about living a long healthy life,” she said.
Yoshihiko Hotta, 85, the only man in the class of about 30 people, didn't try the rouge but happily put on the hand cream and went along with all the exercise routines.
While acknowledging he felt some effects of aging like sore legs, he declared with conviction: “I don't think age is relevant.”
Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@yurikageyama
Participants try on makeup at a special class at a Tokyo housing complex that teaches people to stay healthy and beautiful, on Feb. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)
Yoshiko Abe applies lipstick at a special makeup class at a community center room in Tokyo, on Feb. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)
Women try on the lipstick of the color they like as they take part in a special makeup class at a community center room in Tokyo, on Feb. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)
The first five games of the Winnipeg-St. Louis series have all had the same result. The home team won.
The Blues need that trend to continue Friday — or else.
Game 6 of the Jets-Blues matchup awaits in St. Louis, with Winnipeg — the NHL's best team in the regular season — holding a 3-2 series lead. The Blues rolled to wins on their home ice in Games 3 and 4, taking those games by scores of 7-2 and 5-1 to extend a run of invincibility there that has lasted for more than two months.
“It's a tough building to play in,” Jets forward Vladislav Namestnikov said. “But I know we can get the win there.”
If they do, they will be doing so without star Mark Scheifele, the team's second-leading scorer and leader in game-winning goals this season. Scheifele was hurt in Game 5 and wasn't flying with Winnipeg to St. Louis on Thursday for Game 6.
The teams had different opinions about when Scheifele got hurt, but the bottom line is the Jets will be missing a big part of their team for a potential closeout game.
“Certainly, not having him is going to be huge,” Jets coach Scott Arniel said Thursday. “But at the end of the day, last night, our three centermen had to step up and play big minutes and did a great job. ... So proud of the group, how everybody stepped up. It's kind of what our team has done all year. Guys go down, other guys step in.”
Winnipeg was the most recent visiting team to win in St. Louis — but that was more than two months ago.
The Blues have put together the longest home winning streak in the NHL this season, a 14-game run that started on Feb. 23 and hasn't stopped. St. Louis has outscored opponents 69-25 in that span at home, winning by an average of a whopping 3.14 goals per game.
“We've played some good hockey at home for a couple months now,” St. Louis' Brayden Schenn said. “We're comfortable there.”
That's a bit of an understatement. The Blues have simply looked like a different team in their own building; St. Louis has had stretches of three goals in five minutes, three goals in eight minutes and three goals in 15 minutes so far in this series on its own ice.
They looked nothing like that club in Game 5, a 5-3 Winnipeg win that probably wasn't as close as that score would make it seem. Blues coach Jim Montgomery didn't waste any time thinking about that game once the final horn sounded.
“We can analyze every part of it. They were better,” Montgomery said. “So, we're on to the next one.”
It took St. Louis a long — long — time to get home on Thursday, after their travel plans were seriously delayed.
The Blues had plane issues trying to leave Winnipeg and, after a replacement jet was sent to Manitoba, they finally took off about eight hours behind schedule.
The Jets landed in St. Louis around 3 p.m. Central time on Thursday, actually a tiny bit ahead of schedule, while the Blues didn't get there until about 9 p.m.
When/Where to Watch: Game 6, Friday. 8 p.m. (TNT/truTV/Max)
Series: Jets lead 3-2
Winnipeg hasn't closed out a series with a road win since 2018, and getting it done Friday will be difficult.
Forget St. Louis' 14-game home winning streak, which is impressive enough. The Blues simply don't give up scoring chances in their building; they have allowed two goals or less in 11 of those 14 wins, and that level of stinginess puts enormous pressure on the other team's netminder.
That said, Winnipeg goalie and MVP hopeful Connor Hellebuyck has reveled in big moments like this all season.
The newly announced Hart Trophy finalist — alongside Edmonton forward Leon Draisaitl and Tampa Bay forward Nikita Kucherov — led the NHL with 47 wins, a 2.00 GAA, and a .925 save percentage this season, had eight shutouts, steered Winnipeg to its first Presidents’ Trophy, won the William M. Jennings Trophy (fewest goals allowed) for the second straight year and seems like a lock for the Vezina Trophy (top goalie) for the second straight year and third time in six seasons.
If Hellebuyck does win the Hart as MVP, he'd be the fourth goalie in the league's expansion era to do it alongside Dominik Hasek, José Théodore and Carey Price. He was pulled twice in St. Louis and has a gaudy 3.96 goals-against average and .822 save percentage in this series — including all three wins.
“He's our best player,” Namestnikov said.
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St. Louis Blues' Brayden Schenn (10) celebrates with Colton Parayko (55) after scoring against the Winnipeg Jets during the second period in Game 4 of an NHL hockey first-round playoff series Sunday, April 27, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Connor Hamilton)
St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) saves the shot from Winnipeg Jets' Jaret Anderson-Dolan (28) during first period NHL playoff action in Winnipeg on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (John Woods/The Canadian Press via AP)
Winnipeg Jets' Dylan DeMelo (2), Vladislav Namestnikov (7), Gabriel Vilardi (13) and Kyle Connor (81) celebrate DeMelo's goal against the St. Louis Blues during second period NHL playoff action in Winnipeg on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (John Woods/The Canadian Press via AP)
St. Louis Blues head coach Jim Montgomery questions referee Kelly Sutherland during first period NHL playoff action against the Winnipeg Jets in Winnipeg on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (John Woods/The Canadian Press via AP)
St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) makes the save off Winnipeg Jets' Gabriel Vilardi's (13) wraparound attempt during the third period of an NHL playoff game in Winnipeg on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (John Woods/The Canadian Press via AP)
Winnipeg Jets and St. Louis Blues players rough it up after the Blues score during the third period of an NHL playoff game in Winnipeg on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (John Woods/The Canadian Press via AP)
