Online Retailers
Online sales increased as shops closed and people refused to venture out.
Companies that offered essential goods delivered to your door saw a huge surge in popularity.
Supermarkets quickly followed suit and offered more delivery slots than ever, increasing both their staff levels and profits. Many supermarkets were so in demand when it came to deliveries they had waiting lists and those in need had priority access.
Ocado were the clear winners, nearly doubling their earnings since the beginning of 2020.
Amazon was the ultimate winner during the pandemic, in fact Jeff Bezos increased his net worth by £10bn in a single day! Amazon workers however did not receive such benefits, working extended hours in cramped spaces.
The High Street
Closed shops and deserted high streets have caused huge problems for many retailers, some of which will never recover.
Those shops deemed non-essential have been closed fully for the majority of the pandemic and those without online stores or click and collect options have suffered harshly.
The retail empire collapsed into administration, as did Debenhams, Laura Ashley & Cath Kidston to name just a few.
Small businesses and retailers faired even worse as they rarely have the same back up funds and support systems like the big retailers.
The Supermarkets
Big winners of the pandemic were the supermarkets, after a huge amount of the economy shut down supermarkets thrived. Staying open as essential retailers they saw major profits; Morrison’s Boss declared it as a “renaissance” for their store and Tesco’s profits soared.
Offering not only essentials but clothes, toys, beauty products and much more, supermarkets became a one stop once again and welcomed the patronage.
Travel & Tourism
The travel & tourism industry has been hit hard. By October 2020 more than 40 airlines had gone bust. Virgin Atlantic were refused government help and Richard Branson injected £200 million of his own money into the company to keep it going.
British Airways lost £5bn in the first 9 months of 2020 and TUI announced losses of £1.8bn.
Cinemas closed indefinitely as did live music venues and theatres, many of which will never re-open.
Video Call Providers
Working from home lead to a lot of changes, desks and printers sold out everywhere and you couldn’t get a desk chair for love nor money.
The biggest change however was the way meetings were held. Whether at your desk in a suit or on the sofa in your PJs video calls were all the rage. Facetime, Zoom, Skype & Teams, just to name a few became the new norm in speaking to and interacting with colleagues.
Zoom was by far the biggest winner, becoming a household name. The company is now valued at around $100bn thanks to the pandemic, it also gave the pandemic its most popular catchphrase “You’re on mute”.
Hospitality & Catering
Several industries are facing near extinction due to their closure and loss of earrings during the pandemic.
One industry finding it particularly hard is hospitality, the closure of pubs, clubs, bars and restaurants has left many companies struggling to stay in business. While some chains such as Marston’s & Greene King cut jobs, other companies such as nightclub owner Deltic filed for administration.
Cleaning Products
The Sale of cleaning products, especially those known to be antibacterial flew off the shelves, there wasn’t an anti-bac wipe left in sight. People panic bought cleaning supplies in order to keep the virus away.
The company that produce Dettol – Reckitt Benckiser saw a huge rise in their sales and profits. They did however have to warn their customers not to ingest their products after Donald Trump suggested it would combat Covid 19.
Self Employed Workers
While the furlough scheme was rolled out across many industries to support workers and keep them going, self employed workers did not receive the same.
Many saw little to no help from the government. There are an estimated 3 million self employed people in the UK who struggled financially unaided throughout the entire pandemic.
