UK - Bright future on the cards for disability retailer

Share tip: Bright Future on the cards for disability retailer - at Moneyweek.co.uk - the best of the week's international financial media.

"Old people are big business," says Penny Share Focus. Today, a fifth of the UK is over 60; by 2050, this age group will have swollen to a third of the population. Meanwhile, the number of people whose mobility is impaired has reached 8.5 million - one in four households now contain a person who is considered to be disabled in some way - and is increasing "at quite a pace". And not everyone who needs help getting around wants to wait for NHS-subsidised age and disability equipment.

All this is excellent news for age and disability equipment retailer Bright Futures Group. It is a relative newcomer to this £300m a year sector, but it has already achieved UK market-leader status with 26 nationwide stores trading under the Scootermart Mobility Centre name; 20 of its stores are operated by franchisees, and it owns the rest. The stores stock over 800 items, ranging from Battery scooters to lifting chairs, and also handle the installation of stair lifts and similar aids. Bright Futures also operates a profitable and "market-dominant" website for the disabled. This advertising-led business produces a magazine and catalogue for its members, as well as developing e-learning software for companies with disabled customers.

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