Seemingly overnight, due to Covid-19 changes, the profound majority of Australians and NZers have become shut-ins whilst we await the ‘all clear’ – which let’s face it, might be a while in coming.
And what are we all doing? Now that emergency grocery shopping has slowed somewhat, it turns out that a lot of us, when we’re not lost in our TV streams, are shopping. Not shopping in the usual manner – in the malls, but almost completely shopping online.
What are we buying? Well, there’s been a huge upswing in alcohol sales (up 70-100%) and exercise and athletic gear, electronics and gaming, home office gadgetry, pharmacy items and pet food/favours have all had very significant jumps in demand. Although, clothing, footwear and luxury items haven’t done anywhere near as well (especially with many sellers having to close their retail arms).
Online shopping has increased so much that Australia Post reported the number of parcels delivered daily increased by 50% around Easter and it still continues to rise.
In case you’re wondering about opportunities that have resulted from Covid-19 changes? In fact, there’s been a doubling of cats and dogs adoptions ‘as social therapy’ and those pets are obviously being lovingly spoiled by their new owners.
What else has seen a rapid rise (forgive the pun)? It’s kitchen gadgetry and specialty baking items! Apparently when you lock us all inside, if everyone’s social media feeds are to be believed, we start baking! We’ve seen restaurants completely pivot away from cooking food to supplying customers (local and further afield) with recipes and ingredients for hot cross buns, breads, pastas, Asian delicacies and cake creations. And then there’s the folks turning liquor into hand sanitiser, frocks into facemasks, just to keep up supply of essential items to our healthcare workers.
Covid-19 changes have seen a lot of businesses fundamentally changing their offerings just to survive. And whilst it’s been a bit of a horror ride in terms of the number of and speed required to change, it might just end up being a blessing in disguise. Maybe not so much in terms of how those businesses will move forward, but in showing them how quickly any changes can really be implemented when they have to be and how creatively they can solve any future problems.
So what does all of this mean as we contemplate the future of consumer business? Many experts are postulating that Australia’s shopping patterns will change forever – with far more being done online, even once we’re officially encouraged to re-engage with ‘normal’ life.
Essentially, if online shopping is ‘the way’ of the future, a lot, if not most, businesses will need to really use this time to think through the infrastructure they’re likely to need moving forward. That might be by upping their payment systems and gateways, their tech stack, their inventory suppliers and systems – maybe even returning to manufacture (just saying) and of course, 3PL partnering in terms of storage, logistics and delivery.
And that’s where we can help. If you’re thinking you might need to partner with a 3PL, we’d love to chat. You can call us on 02 9828 0111 or get in touch via the form below.
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