The CoronaVirus Pandemic has caused so much disruption in every aspect of our lives from our health, to our jobs, to our children’s education. The enormous effect of CoronaVirus on the world’s economy is unprecedented as businesses have been forced to shut, national and international lockdowns have been enforced and people have been stuck inside their homes. The retail sector, already a much changed aspect of the economy over recent years, has experienced some enormous changes over the past months.

In this article, we will look at six ways the pandemic changed our shopping habits.

1. Increased Online Retail

As if Jeff Bezos needed any more money, the CoronaVirus Pandemic has only caused even greater business for Amazon and other online retailers. With the majority of bricks and mortar shops being closed and people’s movement being restricted, more and more people have turned to online retail.

People all over the world who have been stuck in their homes have been using online stores for everything from food to toilet paper. Amazon alone has added over $500 Billion to its value since the start of 2020 which when you consider the loss of valuation that has been experienced by most businesses is quite incredible.

2. More Shopping in Grocery-Anchored Shopping Centers

During the Pandemic, food of course remained a necessary purchase, and many people still visited the supermarket rather than getting home delivery. There was a definite trend shift however to an increased number of people visiting grocery-anchored shopping centers than previously.

The experts at PhillipsEdison.com explain that this kind of shopping option has been ideal during the pandemic because it enabled people to buy all the groceries that they needed in one place. If there were any additional items that they needed other than food, they were then able to make use of the other stores in the shopping center, and so could fulfill all their retail needs whilst still only visiting one store location. This helped to stop the spread of the virus as people were not moving around too much from location to location.

3. Hoarding

One of the early responses to the pandemic in many places around the world was widespread hoarding and panic buying. In many countries including the UK and the US the first few weeks of the western spread of the virus resulted in empty shelves in supermarkets as people stocked up on toilet paper, hand sanitizer and bottled water.

This early panic settled down as the weeks went on and people realized that stocks were not going to be permanently diminished but it was certainly a strange sight in countries so used to having more than they need.

4. Social Distancing in Stores

Social distancing has been a very important weapon against the virus as the less people you come into close contact with, the less chance the virus has to spread. Different countries have had different social distancing policies, but in many stores, with government regulations or the stores’ own safety procedures have resulted in social distancing in stores.

This has seen cones, barriers, and stickers or lines on the floors showing customers where to stand, where to walk and how to shop safely. As well as these social distancing regulations, stores all around the world have been following government advice and either advising or requiring customers to wear a mask when they come in the store.

5. A Greater Emphasis on Health Goods

It makes sense that during the time of a Pandemic, the sales of health supplements and other goods have been on the increase.

With various “miracle cures” and other potential solutions to the virus being touted on the news and on social media, people have been buying up all kinds of different herbal medicines and supplements which have been hoped can raise immunity to CoronaVirus or stop it from spreading.

6. More Respect to the Sales Assistants

The Covid-19 Pandemic has really shown us who the genuine key workers in society are. Previously, many people would have simply dismissed sales assistants in stores, or allowed their frustrations with long queues or what they perceived to be poor service to result in their being rude to people working in stores. There is a new respect for sales assistants however as shoppers acknowledge that they are putting their lives on the line for usually minimal pay.

Our shopping habits, like so many other aspects of our lives, have been transformed by the CoronaVirus Pandemic. The rise of online shopping which was already steadily on the increase has now exploded. Whether we ever return to how things were before or whether this is the “new norm”, only time will tell.

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