(Yicai Global) April 13 -- Midea Group has released more than 60 smart and small home appliances, marking the first time that the Chinese appliance giant targets a certain age group.

The products can be controlled via the firm's Meiju mobile application to cater to Generation Z or those born after 1995, the Foshan-based firm said at a press conference yesterday.

Midea’s smart home appliances now target younger people, intelligence, and certain application scenarios, Shi Yong, general manager of the related unit's domestic marketing, told Yicai Global.

The major air con and fridge maker's move may be partly motivated by the competition and spending power. Midea's rivals Xiaomi, Bear Electric Appliance, and Morphy Richards have been adding digital features way before this.

Moreover, China had nearly 230 million residents who belong to Gen Z but their consumption made up about 40 percent of the total last year, according to data from Beijing All View Cloud Data Technology.

“Midea is shifting from a cooking hardware supplier to a cooking solutions provider,” said Shi. Users should later be able to buy recipe ingredients such as rice and vegetables via the Meiju app and have them delivered to their homes. The company expects to have its grocery supply chain to be ready in the next six months.

Midea will set up areas for users to customize the products, Shi added. The firm has already opened its first experience store of this kind in Chongqing.

Editor: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi