Development of a user-centered, modular housing product for the 55+ segment
In their mid-50s, many people enter a new phase of life. active, independent, and with clear expectations regarding housing and quality of life. However, the market still offers only limited solutions that truly meet these needs, as many existing concepts primarily define this target group by age.
Together with Milani, Implenia developed a new housing product for the 55+ segment, based on different lifestyles and focused on real user needs.
Starting point: limited market fit and a heterogeneous target group
With the development of real estate products, Implenia is expanding its service portfolio and strengthening its strategic positioning as an integrated real estate and construction services provider. Many existing market solutions do not reflect the self-image of the “best agers” segment. Implenia therefore set out to develop a housing product tailored to lifestyle, comfort, and health in this phase of life.
The 55+ segment is large and diverse. The key question was how to develop a relevant and marketable housing product and which segments to prioritize in order to create a compelling offering for both residents and investors.
At the same time, this initiative was part of a broader strategic shift. Instead of developing real estate exclusively as individual projects, Implenia aimed to create transferable, structured product solutions.
Target group–driven product development instead of demographic simplification
To address this complexity, Milani conducted initial trend and market analyses and incorporated insights from aging research, consumer psychology, and housing psychology. It quickly became clear that age or traditional demographic criteria are not sufficient – different lifestyles and needs are what truly matter.
Together with the partner marketmind, Milani conducted a representative quantitative study in Switzerland and Germany, complemented by qualitative interviews and co-creation workshops. This resulted in differentiated target group segments based on housing typologies, lifestyles, and actual willingness to relocate.
This robust data foundation enabled Implenia to precisely understand the target group and identify the segments with the highest market potential. It provided a reliable basis for further product development.
In parallel, Implenia published a white paper summarizing the key insights and the newly developed typology.
User-centered development of a modular housing product
Working closely with Implenia, Milani translated these insights into concrete product concepts for the prioritized segments. The focus was on apartment design, everyday usability, complementary services, and requirements related to neighborhood, location, and market positioning.
Through an iterative process, the concepts were tested and refined together with potential residents and investors to sharpen the requirements and ensure relevance.
The result is a clearly defined, modular housing product that goes beyond architecture alone. It integrates spatial quality, usage, services, and positioning into a coherent overall offering and is designed to be adapted to different locations and specific market conditions.
Guidelines for consistent implementation
For further development, Milani defined overarching guidelines for architecture, interior design, and service offerings. These create a shared understanding of the housing product and ensure consistent implementation across different projects, while still allowing flexibility for location-specific adaptations.
The structured, data-driven innovation process enabled Implenia to systematically integrate user needs into product development and to address a new market segment in a targeted way. At the same time, the requirements of residents, investors, and other stakeholders were brought together into a consistent concept.
This provides Implenia with a solid foundation to develop a future-proof, scalable housing offering that reflects real lifestyles and can be adapted to different locations and market conditions.
Milani services
- Front-end innovation and service design
- Industrial design expertise for capital goods
- Target group analysis and segmentation
- Quantitative and qualitative research
- Co-creation, prototyping, and testing
- Development of modular product concepts
