COVID-19: The impact on consumer goods

COVID-19 is a once-in-a-lifetime health and economic disaster, which will permanently change the way people work and live. The effects on the consumer goods industry will be profound and lasting; we will not be going back to the world we knew. This crisis is fundamentally changing how and what consumers buy and is accelerating immense structural changes in the consumer goods industry.

Now is the time to heed this unprecedented wake-up call to be agile and relevant to consumers and customers—not just during the crisis, but also in the future. Consumer buyer values are already shifting to products and experiences which are more healthy, trustworthy, environmentally sensitive, and more supportive of the communities in which they live and work.

Near-term, consumer goods companies will need to continually flex with rapidly changing conditions and begin building the structure and capabilities to face a volatile future.

To understand the key actions consumer goods companies, need to take immediately, answer these three questions:

1. WHAT are the key drivers of change – and what are the lasting and pervasive effects?
   • How are health and economic conditions changing?
   • What are consumers’ immediate needs – and what permanent changes are occurring?
   • How are your value chain partners impacted – and what does this mean for your future ecosystem?
2. WHO do you need to be connected with – both internally and across the ecosystem? Companies need to consider the full set of stakeholders and influencers.
3. HOW do you respond to today’s crisis while also preparing your organization to reset and renew your business? Focusing on just one area is not enough. You need to be clear on your positioning across all 10 core action areas.