Product and services are struggling to come up with unique selling points due to hyper-competition. It means that, availability in retail shelves and strong marketing supply chain are critical to drive sales volume.
It is also true for the essential commodities in retail industry, as the consumers ran towards to buy during the pandemic. Due to risk of Corona virus, consumers adopted the ‘basic necessity’ behaviour in their decision making pre-buying.
What if someone else buys the product and I miss out? It won’t be available during lockdown and I will never get it. Such thinking arises out of mass effect. The trips to shopping have drastically fallen compared to pre-pandemic period. Next shopping trip can be after next week. People will gather in large group to buy essential items and fear of missing out creeps in. Hence distribution network for the assured availability of essential grocery items is tantamount.
Merely relying on age old brand is not the best thing a manufacturer could do. The ability of the manufacturer to safely delivery at door did not receive much recognition before as it did during lockdown.
Due to interstate transportation limitations of the distribution chain, local brands are thriving better than recognised brands; even out-competing them.
Lesson for manufacturers
Being quickly adaptable to the results of fast pace spread of virus in consumer goods is the biggest lesson brands must learn. Since no fixed solution exist, even the big brands had to change the strategies for being available. Small shop keepers with decentralised process coped well in this pandemic.
So the question arises, will the consumers come back to recognised brands after the pandemic, or will they prefer the local products, as local products provide the same value as branded ones?
Mention your views in the comments.
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