208.5 billion won and 157.4 billion won.
These are the annual accounts receivable figures for Bodyfriend and Ceragem, the two corporations dominating the domestic massage chair market. As of 2023, the accounts receivable includes a significant amount of money that the corporations will receive in the future after selling massage chairs to customers in a rental format.
Bodyfriend accounts for 49% of total sales, while Ceragem reaches 27%.
This reflects the financial structure that arises from the nature of the rental business. The two corporations have grown since the 2010s by offering rental services as an incentive to lower the prices of high-end massage chairs, which typically exceed 3 million won.
However, they also faced aftershocks. In the case of Bodyfriend, when it pursued an initial public offering (IPO) in 2018, it failed due to accounting issues related to revenues mixed with the financial element of rentals.
Currently, Bodyfriend and Ceragem are adopting ‘financial lease accounting,’ which reflects the total amount of the massage chair as sales immediately when a customer signs a rental contract. One accounting expert noted, “Massage chair corporations need to build provisions for bad debts to prepare for potential defaults in rental payments.”
These corporations are reportedly struggling with customer management issues due to customers not paying rental fees. This is because they cannot dispute a customer simply for not paying. Payments are categorized over a certain period into initial and mid-to-long-term delinquents, and if delinquencies prolong, they proceed with debt collection.
The accounts receivable turnover rate for both corporations is also low, below four times. The accounts receivable turnover rate indicates how quickly the corporation can convert receivables into cash. A high turnover rate suggests that accounts receivable are being collected smoothly, whereas a low rate indicates a prolonged collection period, leading to a higher risk of bad debts.
Bodyfriend’s accounts receivable turnover rate is 2.01 times as of 2023, while Ceragem’s is 3.7 times. Comparing this with Coway, a leading water purifier rental corporation in Korea, which has a turnover rate of 16 times during the same period, this is a low figure. It shows that the nature of high-priced massage devices makes it difficult to collect receivables on time.
An industry representative for massage chairs stated, “Currently, the scale of overdue accounts for domestic massage chair corporations is not that large,” but noted, “It is uncertain what risks may arise in the future as market conditions are not favorable.”
In fact, the bigger crisis faced by the two corporations is the saturation of the domestic massage chair market, leading to a decline in performance. The general analysis of the market is that households and corporate customers capable of purchasing expensive massage chairs have already bought their products.
In reality, Bodyfriend's sales peaked at 611 billion won in 2021, then decreased to 543.6 billion won in 2022 and 419.6 billion won in 2023. Ceragem also recorded its highest sales of 750.1 billion won in 2022 but decreased to 584.6 billion won in 2023.
Currently, both corporations are seeking to establish new growth engines. They aim to surpass being just massage chair corporations. Therefore, neither company introduces itself as a massage chair corporation. Bodyfriend refers to itself as a ‘healthcare robot corporation,’ while Ceragem identifies as a ‘home healthcare platform corporation.’
Bodyfriend is preparing for growth focused on artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics technology. They plan to evolve the massage chair into a healthcare robot by incorporating AI and robotics technology. A representative example is the ‘733,’ unveiled as a healthcare robot at the recently held largest IT exhibition in the world, CES 2025. Unlike existing massage chairs, the 733’s arms and legs move independently, maximizing the effect of full-body stretching massage. It is equipped with AI technology to monitor the user's heart health in real-time.
Lee Kyung-soo, the representative of Ceragem, outright denied being a massage device corporation. At CES 2025, he declared, “Ceragem is no longer just a simple massage device corporation.” He emphasized that they aim to leap into a corporation providing solutions for consumers to enjoy a healthy life based on seven areas of healthcare brands, including certified massage beds and chairs, beauty devices, and water purifiers. This aligns with his emphasis on ‘growing into a home healthcare platform corporation.'
Even while denying being a massage chair corporation, attention is focused on the growth stories of these two leading corporations in the market.