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People are panic shopping now, but once the dust settles there may be a big change in the products people buy. For one, grocery private brands will likely see a surge. This is because consumers will likely seek out value over name brands — but also that the perception behind private branding has changed considerably over the last few years.
With physical fitness facilities deemed non-essential and workout equipment selling out fast, virtual fitness startups are having a moment. Strength-training system Tonal, which launched in 2018 and retails for $2,995, is seeing a surge in sales this month. The wall-mounted weight simulation product is getting a second look from customers searching for exercise activities in confined spaces.
As “retail apocalypse” rumors continue to fly, teenagers are reviving shopping centers’ foot traffic. Among the draws are a social experience, immediate gratification, a personal branding opportunity and a much-needed break from their mobile phones.
The coronavirus outbreak has lead workers from all kinds of industries to push for greater protections from their employers, and retail is no exception. This begs the question of how, once the coronavirus outbreak slows, which temporary changes to a retailer's paid sick leave policy or pay increases will stick. One potential outcome: that more retail workers will seek to unionize.
As brands struggle to stay afloat in light of the coronavirus's spread, what the DTC industry will look like is a big question mark. Big brands will likely adopt DTC-like tendencies, and small startups will probably die. The one thing that's for sure is that earlier doomsday predictions have rapidly accelerated.
There's more ways than ever for teens to make money. Some teenagers are foregoing the typical 20 hours per week part-time job in favor of starting their own side hustles, like promoting sponsored content on their Instagram pages or selling secondhand clothes. As a result, businesses that rely on a lot of young employees are having to offer more perks in order to convince teenagers to work for them
As the medical gear and staffing shortage increases, retail’s efforts toward coronaviruses relief are expanding beyond monetary donations. Since the virus’ outbreak in the U.S., multiple brands have announced plans to quickly offer important aid to those on the front lines of the public health crisis. Companies include direct to consumer players like Allbirds, Clove and Judy, as well as corporations like Apple, Walmart and Gap, among others. Medical gear is depleting fast, which has manufacturers like Honeywell putting factory schedules into overdrive to produce N95 masks. In the meantime, those with existing reservoirs are stepping in to replenish protective equipment and other needs for the healthcare providers who need it most.
The coronavirus pandemic has caused retail revenue to plummet "almost overnight," Hutchinson said. But he added that the DTC side of the business is strong. "Right now consumers are online, so we pivoted our business and really have been able to make up the ground that we lost to the retail."
DTC brands are going back to their roots by shifting their focus back to e-commerce.
Nike took a hit to its China business during the third quarter thanks to the coronavirus outbreak there. Now, the company will look at what the outbreak, which is ramping up in the U.S., will do to its retail business, even as the company hopes that its growing DTC business and loyalty programs may mitigate the worst of the impact.
It's a critical week for U.S. retailers, as Friday will mark two weeks since many of them decided to temporarily shutter their stores. While most of them said that they would fully pay their store employees through the closure, they were also only initially planning on closing their stores for two to three weeks. With the number of coronavirus cases in the U.S. only continuing to grow, it's likely that many of their stores will remain closed for longer than that. As such, trade groups like the National Retail Federation are more urgently pushing Congress to include relief for retail businesses in any bailout package.
"With everyone staying home, it’s actually been good for the puzzle business."
When 21-year-old Hunter College student Kenneth Pabon began looking for a fashion internship during his spring 2019 semester, he took a little bit of a different approach to finding his gig. Pabon did not use Hunter College’s career advising office or scour online job boards like LinkedIn, where he does have a profile, or Indeed. Instead, he Instagram direct-messaged two of his favorite fashion influencers, Sophie and Charlotte Bickley, sisters behind the website and social media accounts Yin 2My Yang.
Studies suggest around 80% of Gen-Zers expect to consume fewer animal-related products in the coming year, over 30% intend to be on entirely meat-free diets by 2021 and 44% think being vegan is cooler than smoking. But Gen Z’s culture and attitudes surrounding plant-based products are very different than those of their elders, and what’s resonated with Millennials isn’t going to cut it with a new generation of consumers for whom availability of non-animal-based products is expected.
"Landlords have been sympathetic to the retailer brands’ situation during these shutdowns."
In a new guide for brand and agency marketers, learn the most cutting-edge measurement and attribution techniques preferred by advertisers that have successfully scaled their TV budgets.
In 2008, Melissa Mash, now the co-founder and CEO of handbag brand Dagne Dover, was managing Coach's wholesale e-commerce business, which consisted of selling through the websites of department stores like Macy's and Nordstrom. As the recession worsened, she got a crash course in what not to do during hard economic times. Mash said the biggest takeaways for her were, one, the dangers of offering deep discounting, and second, relying on wholesale retail partners to drive all of your sales, especially when they are hurting for revenue themselves.
Read MoreExclusively for Modern Retail+ members: Hear from Colin Darretta, CEO and Founder of Wellpath, on the future of direct to consumer business.
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