Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The issues
- Nearly half of Canadians are concerned about the health risks associated with their weight
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- Figure 1: Attitudes towards health management, March 2016
- Few have faith in the information they find online
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- Figure 2: Attitudes towards health management, March 2016
- Quebecers are less likely to visit their primary care doctors
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- Figure 3: Healthcare sources, Quebec vs overall, March 2016
- Opportunities
- Pharmacies have the opportunity to leverage their differentiation point: expertise
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- Figure 4: Purchase of health and wellness products, correlation analysis, March 2016
- Other retailers can also leverage their differentiation points: broad scope of products
- Quebecers want more resources
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- Figure 5: Attitudes towards health management, by province, March 2016
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- An aging population means a need to frame health and wellness issues accordingly
- Population growth due to immigration will place greater demands on urban centres
- Economic pressures will push consumers towards cheaper options
Market Factors
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- Population is aging
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- Figure 6: Population aged 65 years and over in Canada, historical and projected (% of total), 1971-2061
- Marketing efforts will need to be framed accordingly
- Greater access to experts will be necessary
- Over half of Canadians are overweight or obese
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- Figure 7: Body mass index, self-reported rate of being overweight or obese among Canadian adults, 2010-14
- International migration puts more pressure on CMAs
- The population is primarily concentrated in four urban centres
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- Figure 8: Share of population of Canada, by territory/province, 2014
- Canadian population is growing due mainly to immigration
- The implications for urban centres
- Rising prices lead to cost savings behaviours
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- Figure 9: Consumer price index, May 2010-April 2016
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- A holistic approach resonates with Canadians
- Addressing the health and wellness needs by age
- Wearables see low adoption, though hold great potential
What’s Working?
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- OTC and the holistic approach to health and wellness
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- Figure 10: Tropic Fruit Multivitamin Adult Chews Centrum, 2016
- Helping customers make better choices at the grocery store: Loblaw
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- Figure 11: Loblaws advertisement, “Loblaws: Want to raise a food lover?”, 2016
- Raising awareness of mental health issues: Bell Canada
What’s Struggling?
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- Interest in wearable technology remains present, but adoption is low
What’s Next?
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- Wellness on the go
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- Figure 12: Jamieson Vitamins YouTube “Vitamin Sprays” advertisement, 2016
- Rewarding healthy behaviours
- Helping seniors with aging
- Shared living for seniors: Room2Care
- Ride-sharing service for the elderly: Lift Hero
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Canadians place the greatest priority on physical and mental wellness
- Most feel they are physically well, though weight may be a concern
- Canadians are proactive and nourish their wellness with food
- Canadians are proactive and nourish their wellness with food
- More in-person and mobile support are desired
- Pharmacies are the go-to retailer type for health and wellness purchases
Factors of Personal Wellness
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- Physical and mental wellness are the two most important aspects
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- Figure 13: Importance of personal wellness types, March 2016
- Figure 14: Importance of personal wellness types (#1 ranked), March 2016
- Value on wellness aspects vary by life stage
- Physical wellness edges out mental wellness for Chinese Canadians
- Canadians have more clarity on addressing physical wellness than mental wellness
How Canadians Perceive Their Physical Wellness
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- Most feel they are physically well, though weight may be a concern
- Perception of health increases with age
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- Figure 15: Agreement with statement “I rarely ever get sick” (any agree), by age, March 2016
- Canadians are generally positive about their overall well-being – in their words
- Health risks associated with weight is a concern for half
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- Figure 16: Attitudes towards health management, March 2016
- Addressing physical wellness through embracing different angles
Approach to Health Management
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- Canadians proactively nourish their health with food
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- Figure 17: Attitudes towards health management, March 2016
- “You are what you eat” – in their words
- Quebecers and French speakers are the biggest believers in food as medicine
- Women skew towards natural/holistic, men towards medications
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- Figure 18: Attitudes towards health management, by gender, March 2016
- The perspectives holds for parents
- Opportunities for retailers to arm consumers with information
Trusted Sources for Treatment of Personal Wellness Issues or Illnesses
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- Canadians engage in self-diagnosis, though few put stock in the internet
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- Figure 19: Attitudes towards health management, March 2016
- Traditional sources remain the standard
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- Figure 20: Healthcare sources, March 2016
- Quebecers are less likely to visit their primary care doctors
- Millennials still skew more heavily towards the traditional
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- Figure 21: Healthcare sources, by age, March 2016
- The internet is a starting point for Millennials – in their words
- Opportunities to connect by providing guidance
Interest in Additional Tools to Manage Wellness
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- Canadians want more in-person and mobile/app support
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- Figure 22: Interest in Technology for Health Management, March 2016
- Online or mobile chat systems are valued as an additional connection to the experts
- In their words
- Apps in action
- Quebecers want more self-serve clinics and mobile/online support
- Women are more likely to want support tools
- Women are keen on in-person tools that help with self-treatment
- Mobile and online support will resonate with women under 55
- Middle-aged women show the greatest interest in tracking devices
Where Canadians Purchase Health and Wellness Products
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- Pharmacies remain the go-to store type for health and wellness products
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- Figure 23: Purchase of health and wellness products, by location, March 2016
- General needs can be met with more ‘general’ type stores
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- Figure 24: Purchase of health and wellness products, correlation analysis, March 2016
- Pharmacies may need to do more to hold their lane
- Mass merchandisers can leverage their broad scope of products
How Canadians and Americans Differ on Wellness Priorities
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- Canadians are much more likely to prioritize mental wellness
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- Figure 25: Importance of personal wellness types, Canada vs US, March 2016
- Healthcare differences a likely contributor
- More opportunities for tools to help mental health and wellness in Canada
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Correspondence analysis methodology
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
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