"If the pandemic had lasted just one or two months, it might not have altered consumer habits,” said Toronto-based retail analyst Marina Strauss, who was interviewed for our recent report, “Canada Digital Outlook 2021.”
“But COVID-19 won’t disappear quickly—and as a result, it will permanently change many people’s shopping behavior,” she said. “It especially will prompt more consumers to shift to ecommerce and to purchase more goods on fewer shopping trips.”
In addition to overcoming barriers to online shopping that once existed, consumers are more uncomfortable visiting brick-and-mortar stores during the pandemic. A September 2020 survey conducted by Google Canada found that 30% of respondents indicated they were nervous to shop in-store, and 35% said social distancing measures made it harder to shop. As a consequence, 61% said they would shop more online for the holiday season, a consumer pattern that could endure after the pandemic ends.
Ahead of the 2020 holiday shopping season, it was clear that digital transactions would play a large part in how consumers bought gifts. Only 8% of adult respondents to a Field Agent Canada survey in October 2020 said they were not likely to buy gifts online or in-app. On the flip side, almost three-quarters said they were very or completely likely to do so.