[CES 2023] [From the Scene] Bodyfriend combines health care with massage chair

S. Korean massage chair maker draws praise from visitors at CES 2023

People line up in front of Bodyfriend's exhibition at CES 2023 to try out the company's massage chair on Friday. (Kan Hyeong-woo/The Korea Herald)

LAS VEGAS -- Dozens of people lined up in front of Bodyfriend’s exhibition at CES 2023 on Friday morning, waiting to try out the latest products of the South Korean massage chair maker.

“I feel like it’s another world. It’s amazing. I did a lower body workout a couple of days ago and it really helped ease my muscle,” Halah Ramzi, an electric engineer from San Diego, told The Korea Herald after her 10-minute experience with Quantum Rovo which features Bodyfriend’s signature technology of massaging the two legs separately to resemble the movements of stretching in yoga and Pilates.

Taking part in the global tech convention for the seventh year, Bodyfriend set up its exhibition in the Central Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center. This year’s Central Hall was headlined by major participants at CES, such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Sony.

According to Bodyfriend, some 600 people were able to check out the company’s massage chair on Thursday, the first day of the four-day exhibition. The company initially installed 12 massage chairs to offer the 10-minute trial for visitors but began utilizing three more massage chairs they had set up for display. Bodyfriend said it expects to see a total of 4,000 or more people getting to try its products by the end of CES 2023.

Visitors at Bodyfriend's exhibition receive massage on Phantom Medical Care at CES 2023 in Las Vegas on Friday. (Kan Hyeong-woo/The Korea Herald)

“It was really good. The back, the neck and the shoulders were the best part. It is a major improvement from everything else I’ve tried,” said a CEO of a government consulting company based in Washington, D.C. wanting to remain anonymous.

“One of my best friends owns a company of like 300 people. He would buy three of these right away. Personally, I would buy one for sure,” he said, pointing to Phantom Medical Care that he had just finished experiencing.

Phantom Medical Care, which can help treat herniated neck discs and degenerative stenosis, was registered as a medical device with the US Food and Drug Administration in November.

Bodyfriend unveiled two new devices -- Quantum Rovo Light Care and Eden -- to the public for the first time at this year’s CES. Quantum Rovo Light Care is equipped with light therapy installed on the head of the massage chair to give care to users’ scalp and face skin. Eden is designed with flexible materials so the chair can demonstrate a fully flat mode, allowing users to receive massages while lying down on the device. The company said it plans to release the two models in the US in the second half of this year.

“Moving beyond the massage chairs that traditionally help the body recover and relieve stress, we believe our role is to fit the needs of customers by adding health care functions (to our devices),” said Song Seung-ho, chief marketing officer at Bodyfriend.

By Kan Hyeong-woo(hwkan@heraldcorp.com)