The COVID-19 Pandemic Is Fuelling The Growth Of The Stay-At-Home Economy

The COVID-19 pandemic is fuelling the growth of the stay-at-home economy.

Zara Ingilizian, Head of Shaping the Future of Consumption at the World Economic Forum, has given her comments on how this is shaping the new consumption industry as consumers discover new ways of accessing goods and services, receiving an education and doing their jobs.

Consumer preferences have been shifting toward e-commerce and online entertainment and education for over a decade. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has been an accelerator for companies that serve the stay-at-home economy, which are displaying agility by experimenting with new ideas to build brand affinity. 

For example, Instacart, an American technology company that provides same-day grocery delivery and pick-up service in the U.S. and Canada, stated that their weekly sales jumped 10-fold. It was 20 times higher in California and Washington State, where the virus was widespread early in the pandemic.  

Video streaming has been on the rise for over a decade. According to the Motion Picture Association of America, last year, the number of streaming subscribers around the world (613 million) surpassed the number of cable subscribers (556 million). With city governments asking citizens to shelter in place, new streaming subscription services are seeing growth. In particular, since early February, Disney+ has had a 75% rise in subscribers and passed 50 million paying subscribers in its first five months. 

While there is uncertainty regarding the long-term impact the coronavirus pandemic, we do know with a high degree of certainty that consumer preferences will continue to evolve as they discover new ways of accessing goods and services, receiving an education and doing their jobs.

Source : World Economic Forum

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