Consumer brands - business as usual?

We have heard many a time recently the phrase “business as usual” used amongst businesses adapting to the “new normal”. But what does that really mean for our consumer brands who are seeing their businesses change like they have never done before?

The article below provides just one indication of the challenges consumer brands may face. Changes to consumer behaviour during an era of digital transformation have been afoot for some time, but now more than ever brands are being tested as to the strength of their brand equity and the ability to communicate to both their workforce and consumers in order to continue to service their customers. Playing a considerable part are changes within the supply chain (both due to restricted exports and disruption at the manufacturing level, but also conscious decisions by brands to diversify and produce equipment for the NHS, for example). Brands will not only have to deal with changes in the ever-changing present, but also how they will seamlessly travel back into the post-lockdown world. The High Street for retailers and consumers may no longer be as we know it, but what will be key is the ability of brands to respond effectively to both the risks and opportunities they are faced with to ensure brand preservation as part of a long-term strategy. Watch this space.