Covid-19 has changed the way we live, work – and shop. Businesses across the globe are adapting, vying to tap the new breeds of customers that have emerged from the pandemic.
While online retailers have thrived, tough lockdown restrictions have forced bricks-and-mortar businesses to get creative to keep reaching customers. Meaningful interaction, a focus on brand loyalty and a desire to offer a service that’s somehow both personal and hyper-efficient have taken centre stage.
“Covid has altered consumer behaviour because it has introduced a ‘pattern break’,” says Mark Pilkington, author of Retail Recovery: How Creative Retailers Are Winning In Their Post-Apocalyptic World. “Working from home changes many patterns of consumption. Less is spent on transport and more on telecommunications … Less is spent on extroverted consumption, such as fashion and eating out, and more is spent on introverted consumption, such as athleisure and home improvements.”