Sectors need to pivot and reinvent

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Due to the nature of their businesses, certain sectors benefited more than others during lockdowns: for example, hospitality and tourism unsurprisingly saw their profits plummet.

What became apparent was the importance of being able to think outside the box when external factors come into play. Customers with no option to buy what they needed online just went to another site or brand.

Retail
An example of this was retail chain Primark, who lost $1 billion during the pandemic by not adopting an ecommerce model. While customers said they would welcome an online shop, Primark stated phone list that the cost of setting up an online function would affect the prices they could offer customers. The bottom line? Primark was not prepared logistically for such an undertaking and starting an ecommerce site would have cost time and money.

Other retailers also suffered, changing the landscape of the high street forever. As a result of store closures, the Arcadia Group became insolvent and was bought by online retailer Asos for £65 million for its stock and brands, not for its physical stores, which included the UK high street icons, Topshop, Topman, and Miss Selfridge.

On the flip side of the fashion coin, resale platforms for secondhand clothing like Depop have flourished as people look to sell unworn or unwanted clothes. As buyers become more aware of the lifespan and journey of what they purchase, customers that value sustainability are preferring to buy clothing differently.

Another outcome of the pandemic has been one inspired use of TikTok and its direct effect on the publishing industry. Thanks to the organic success of the #BookTok concept, newer (and younger) audiences are being introduced to the joys of reading paper books and bricks-and-mortar bookshops have been responding by laying out displays based on what’s popular in the online platform.