Disrupting the Status Quo: The Impact of COVID-19 on Our Homes, Economy, and Society

COVID-19 has disrupted daily life. Consumers are more likely to cook at home, shop at fewer stores, try private label products, and care about a brand’s corporate values ─ and those behaviors will last post-pandemic. Brands need to understand the underlying consumer behaviors driving sales, because they are the leading indicators of what will happen next.

This large-scale, market-level analysis explores how dynamics have shifted in our prolonged COVID environment in comparison to the first months of the outbreak, focusing on:

• Our Homes: 80% of households made an online purchase in the past 3 weeks. See what patterns are sticking as consumers move beyond their initial panic and into new patterns.
• Our Economy: Private label is sticking -- we have seen 4x the YoY increase in private label repeat rates compared to national brands in the 3 months post trial. It’s critical to understand if your category is at risk.
• Our Society: For the first time, we have quantified the impact of social belief with verified purchase data. 77% of consumers claim that a company’s stance on social issues is important to them -- expect your competitors and competitive categories will increase their social justice voices.