Silver bullet: New Oriental pivots to late-age learners as China ages

China’s largest private education company in terms of market value has begun offering leisure courses such as dance and photography for older adults in Beijing, as it pivots towards the country’s fast-growing silver economy.

Beijing-based New Oriental Education & Technology Group – which is dual listed in New York and Hong Kong – built its reputation by helping millions of Chinese students prepare for overseas English-language tests such as the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE).

However, the company’s core tutoring business was upended in mid-2021 when China banned for-profit tutoring in core academic subjects for students from grade one to grade nine.

Since then, New Oriental has diversified into new areas, including live streaming e-commerce. Amid falling birth rates and a prolonged decline in the number of Chinese students studying in the United States, its latest foray targets older consumers.

A new social media account named “Beijing New Oriental Retirement Club” began recruiting participants in late January, marketing leisure and social activities to Beijing residents aged between 50 and 75.

Seniors can sign up for free trial classes or attend in-person courses priced at 19.90 yuan (US$2.86) per session. The courses cover dance, Baduanjin qigong and mobile phone photography.