Since March 2020 the commerce has been changing by the day around the world. While each country is recovering differently after the first major global outbreak of COVID-19, the only certainty is that both commerce and consumers will never be the same again.
Despite de-escalation measures coming into place, consumer optimism has fallen across the board and shoppers expect a long-term impact of the coronavirus on their lives.
Confidence and GDP are directly correlated, so as long as consumer-confidence remains so low among the population, spending will also be lower. American consumers are still more optimistic about the future than Europeans. 37% of Americans believe the country will recover in 2 or 3 months.
While we wait to see how the summer months might evolve, first impressions and forecasts show a savvier consumer willing to maintain habits that were assumed 'by force' during lockdown, such as more frequent online shopping and choices based on sustainability, health and proximity.
80% of US consumers say they feel closer to their community because of the crisis.
88% of them expect this relationship to be maintained after the crisis.
70% of consumers expect to take readjustment measures in their routines for 4 months or more.
The average spend per buyer may be reduced by up to 2/3 in the most economically affected countries.
The tendency to spend more on green and sustainable products will depend on the impact of the crisis on each household economy.
