The coronavirus crisis has not only drastically changed how we live, it has also changed how we shop. But what changes are here to stay?
First came the rush on toilet paper, pasta and rice as shoppers stocked up on key grocery items during the early days of the pandemic. Then came the jigsaw puzzle and gym equipment shortages, and a run on computer monitors and laptops to prepare for months of working from home.
Online grocery shopping has, predictably, boomed, and customers are starting to do their shopping during the middle of the week, rather than on the usual popular days of Sunday and Monday. "We’ve got 4000 machines [in the city] and we’ve got 2000 machines that have not vended one unit in the last six weeks. So half of them are what we call ghost machines, and that’s because no-one’s there,” West says.
Fresh food producer Costa Group has forecast strong export and domestic demand for its citrus crops this half.Coles chief Cain has also got significant mileage out of a rarely-used piece of supermarket jargon: 'scratch', referring to customers who make their own meals rather than opting for ready-made. Key ingredients such as flour and spices are up 20 per cent on last year.
Treasury Wine chief marketing officer Angus Lilley says the company has seen strong retail sales during COVID-19 and solid growth in online sales. But on the other side of the ledger wine sales at restaurants and bars have been whacked by lockdowns that have curtailed the hospitality sector.
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