Lots of massage chair news! It was an exciting time at CES in Las Vegas last week. Not only did I get to visit some of my current distributors, but I also was able to check out some other companies. What I found quite exciting was the number of new models coming out this year…so far!
Human Touch Massage Chairs
Human Touch Super Novo X
Of course, we have discussed the Human Touch Super Novo 2.0 and the Super Novo X. I finally was able to sit in the Super Novo X and it was quite impressive. This is the 3rd chair that has movable arm rests to allow for a user to enter the chair from the side of the chair. This is a great option for older folks and back pain sufferers who find it difficult to plop into a chair from the front.
The roller massage was quite strong and the stretch, thanks to the split track technology that Human Touch has now adopted in one of their models, was quite impressive as well. The calf massage, which includes kneading airbags (aka oscillating airbags) and calf rollers, is very strong and helps contribute to the impressive stretch.
This model also has a new audio system from JBL speakers (an upgrade to the previous Altech Lansing speakers, which were already better than anything else in the massage chair market!). It will also have an app for your devices, from which to operate the chair. It weight whopping 455 lbs and is solidly built!
One of the innovative features is the color options for the arm rest side panels and the back pad set. The base of the chair is black for every color, but the arm rest panels and back pad sets come with multiple interchangeable colors. For example, you can pop off the panels of the arm rests and replace the back pads to accommodate a color theme change in your room at home. Arm rest color options are black, espresso, gray, tan, red, gray metallic, and wood-grain. The back pads come in black, espresso, cream, gray, and tan colors.
Below is the video of Victoria Lladoc, Human Touch Director of Marketing, explaining the features of the new Super Novo X with me, as I sat in the chair to experience those features.
Synca & Fujiiryoki Massage Chairs
I also had the opportunity to visit with Nicholas Beese of Synca Wellness chairs. I love visiting with Nick because of his insights into and knowledge of the massage chair industry. He also had some exciting news from his neck of the woods.
Synca is a subsidiary of Johnson Wellness Tech, which is a very large international company. A couple of years ago, Johnson Wellness Tech purchased the factory in Japan that makes the Fujiiryoki massage chairs. I believe it is called Mt. Fuji Medical. Well, they are coming out with a new line of chairs that are made in that factory in Japan. The chair line/brand will be Fujiiryoki.
Nicholas tells me that Fujiiryoki will have 3 new models coming from that factory…all 3 models are literally made in Japan. I say literally, because some models claim to be made in Japan but are only assembled, tested, and programmed there. Their components are primarily made in China. However, the new Fujiiryoki models will be predominantly Japanese-made. Of course, some components will be imported from other countries, but the bulk of the chairs will be made in Japan.
Synca will also be coming out with 2 more models (made in China). From what I understand, all of these new models will be out during the first half of this year. Nicholas will be our guest on Massage Chair Relief LIVE! in March of this year. He said that 1-2 of those models will be here in the USA as prototypes. We will be discussing those new models in our live stream in March (date and time still to be determined).
Daiwa Massage Chairs
I visited the Daiwa booth and tried out the upcoming new Daiwa Supreme Hybrid X. That model should be out in the beginning of the 2nd quarter 2024. It will look and feel like the original Supreme Hybrid, since it has the same split track & roller technology, but with longer leg extension for folks with longer legs, an aromatherapy module, and 24 auto programs, instead of 12.
A number of months ago, Daiwa introduced the Pegasus Smart Hybrid, which also offers a split track, like their Hybrid, but with 4 rollers on the top roller track, rather than 2, like the Hybrid. I still have not experienced that chair yet, but it will probably find it’s way to our showrooms sometime this year.
Etcetera…
While I was at CES, I also saw the BodyFriend booth. BodyFriend is a company that has been the #1 massage chair retailer in the far east, but has not done as well here in the USA. But, they have chairs that are made in a great factory (same factory that makes Infinity, Daiwa, Human Touch, and some Osaki Titan chairs) and that have innovative features. There are a couple of models that have right and left leg and foot massagers that move independently of each other. We have been invited by BodyFriend in the past to become a retailer for them, but they do things different from all the other major name brands, in terms of support, warranty, and supply. We will be visiting with them next month in their offices near my SoCal showroom. Will keep you posted!
OSIM is a large wellness company from Singapore. A number of years they purchased the Brookstone chain of stores and introduced their own OSIM line of massage chairs. Back then, they were known as run-of-the-mill Chinese-made massage chairs. The feedback we got from customers was that they had a failure rate similar to other middle of the road priced Chinese-made chairs, but that their customer support for fixing them in the USA was lacking. They have since sold the Brookstone stores and their chairs became virtually obsolete in the US market, since they now had no representation. They have since opened a few stores in the US, primarily in NorCal, SoCal, and New York. I sat in a chair called the uLove3, which I liked. It had a great neck and shoulder massage plus individual massage “pockets” for each finger. They also have an office chair that offers more massage features than I have ever seen in an office chair. Not sure how their support is now, but time will tell.
New Massage Chair Friends From Germany…
Michael & Manuela
Well, that’s about it for CES. I met Michael Roedeske and his wife, Manuela, who own a number of massage chair stores in Germany (www.massagesesselwelt.de). They ship all over Europe. It was fun to talk to an owner of massage chair stores in another country. We will have Michael & Manuela as guests on our Massage Chair Relief LIVE! stream later this year. Things are a bit different in Europe than they are here in the USA. I think you will find their information and experience very interesting.
I hope you found this information helpful. As the new models are introduced, we will let you know about them, including any and all of the information about each model.
Dr. Alan Weidner
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