Associate Professor Teresa Kuan says the structure of Chinese society and its modes of interaction exacerbate loneliness in cities. People may choose to pay for companions because these relationships are not unpredictable, Kuan states.
Wang Yingwei established a company that provides home help and meals to elderly people. The small business currently employs four people and offers services costing less than half the price of a private caregiver.
"We see ourselves as community children," Yingwei told the BBC. Sinolink estimated the loneliness sector will be worth approximately $7.4 billion in 2025.
Wang Zhoutao operates a hiking business for Mount Huangshan in Anhui Province, where he typically accompanies clients for 10 to 15 days each month. Zhoutao says his clients are primarily individuals who have experienced a setback or feel a void in their personal relationships.
Liu Yanyan, 23, works as a medical escort to assist others. Yang, 91, lives on the outskirts of Beijing and suffers from failing eyesight and glaucoma.
Following her husband's death, Yang considered voluntary euthanasia.
