The economic recession triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on big and businesses. From small startups to large corporations and publicly traded companies, none have been immune to its wrath and have adapted and transformed to stay in business. According to entrepreneur and branding expert Cole Morgan, “To reach their consumers, several companies had to innovate and especially strengthen their digital footprint as stay-at-home directives and curtailed movements in certain states have forced consumers to adapt and embrace online shopping.” He further adds that a time of crisis is also a perfect time of opportunity, sharing how some of the leading brands successfully adapted and thrived amidst the pandemic:
Amazon
With the lockdown enforced during the pandemic, people had to resort to online shopping for their essential and non-essential needs. This gave a huge boost to Amazon, whose business witnessed a 40% spike in revenue last quarter. In a bid to fulfill the pandemic-fuelled surge in orders, the e-commerce giant purchased nearly 1,000 abandoned and out of business department stores in the suburbs and converted them into distribution hubs to cut short the delivery time and reach more consumers efficiently.
Walmart
Expecting an uptick in demand, especially grocery shopping, the brick and mortar retailer, Walmart adapted by building a strong presence online to fulfill the skyrocketing demands for groceries and household supplies. Teaming up with Shopify Inc., it experienced an all-time high sales volume recording a 97% increase in its Q2 earnings.
Walgreens Boots Alliance
The second-largest pharmacy store, Walgreens Boots Alliance, did an incredible job by making their merchandise available through the drive-thru so people could get the essentials they required. It has also implemented safety measures in-store and offers “senior only” shopping hours. Walgreens also partnered with Postmates to deliver grocery and personal care items.
PepsiCo
As the ongoing pandemic drove people to online shopping, PepsiCo launched two websites – Snacks.com and PantryShop.com to offer direct access to more than 100 products under the brand, which includes food and beverages such as Lay’s Cheetos, Doritos, Pepsi, Tropicana, Gatorade, and many more.