Consumer Behavior

Social distancing drives change in consumer spend

Photo by istock.com

April 30, 2020

Social distancing is hurting the consumer wallet as a WalletHub study revealed that 58 million Americans were spending more while following stay-at-home mandates due to COVID-19.

The Coronavirus Shopping Survey polled consumers about the things they were buying as well as concerns on delivery.

Here are additional findings:

• Many use shopping to ease stress: 43% of Americans have participated in "comfort buying" due to social isolation.
• Deliveries cause anxiety: 57% of Americans were concerned about package safety while comfort buying.
• People worried about food contamination: 60% of Americans were concerned about the safety of having food delivered during the pandemic.
• People used entertainment and drinking to take the edge off: Americans were spending the most "non-essential" money on entertainment (29%) and alcohol (23%).

Please check here for more news and insight on how COVID-19 is impacting the retail industry.