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Ecommerce flourished in 2020 as the world reeled under curfews, lockdowns, and businesses shutting down. The fear of the Covid-19 coronavirus overtook our lives and was restricted to only four walls of the house. From work to school to essential goods and services, everything more or less became online. Meeting friends and family became a scary proposition. The only outlet seemed to be shopping, whether it was to make oneself comfortable at home, beat the anxiety, or find hobbies and recreation to keep the mind occupied.
2020-2021 saw a surge in shopping trends for some surprising items. Here is a list of a few such trends during the pandemic.
Fitness Equipment
With nearly the whole world under lockdown, gyms, yoga centers, and other forms of exercise places were shut. Even walks or runs became irregular with the fear of disease spreading. People became more health-conscious and began investing in home gyms and fitness equipment. Revenue from fitness machines more than doubled in numbers, and treadmill sales increased by 135% in a single year!
Alcohol
Unfortunately, drinking became one of the few sources of entertainment for many people. The public went insane, stocking up on alcohol every time the lockdown was lifted. It could have been due to lack of any other social life or many people sinking into depression. Loss of jobs, loss of friends and family, and the whole lockdown situation pushed up alcohol sales by 153.04% only on the e-commerce platform and much higher in real-time sales.
Image by Karolina Grabowska from Pixabay
Laptops, Ipads, Mobile Phones And Tablets
With work-from-home and online classes for students, screens and technology became an absolute necessity in practically every household. Even shopping for groceries and other essentials was all being done majorly online. Thus the surge in sales of tech gadgets was inevitable. 2020 saw a 13% rise in laptop sales. Even headphones, earphones, and other hearing aids were sold in abundance since every house member required some privacy.
Jewelry And Watches
The pandemic hit the world, and the economy of most countries crashed. People took the opportunity to buy jewelry, gold, silver, and other precious metals and stones as investments. Some, due to lack of holidays and recreation, didn’t know how to spend their money. Those with some extra income invested in these luxury items. Smart watches were bought for exercise and health routines. Jewelry sales in the US increased by 106%, while watch sales increased by 48% during the pandemic.
Baking And Cooking Items
Surprisingly, with the whole family at home with little recreation, cooking and baking became a hot favorite! Nearly every family member tried their hands in the kitchen during the pandemic. Baking utensils, cooking gear, baking ingredients, gloves, tongs, yeast, butter paper, and anything that could make the baking experience easier became a shopping item.
Conclusion
As the world slowly moves towards opening up, freedom still has a dark lining looming, a third wave of the pandemic. But people have learned to make the most of staying indoors, and maybe the coming year will see some more surprising shopping trends.
