As the impact of coronavirus echoes around the world, city after city has shut down and sent its citizens into lockdown. While some industries have been able to implement remote working strategies and carry on doing business from home, many shops, cafés, and bars have had to close their doors indefinitely. These closures have had a dramatic impact on job security, income, and the overall economy.
No-one knows how long it will be before life returns to normal, making it even more challenging for those industries hit hard by the virus to plan and survive. So, which sectors have been most affected by the pandemic?
Retail
Around the globe, everyone is making do with less, with widespread job losses leading to plummeting retail sales. Many retailers have closed their doors after being unable to pay their rent. The flow-on effect has been a spate of property investors forced to sell up, with savvy cashed-up firms and individuals seeing this as the perfect time to be investing in commercial real estate.
In terms of the future of the retail space, experts anticipate that consumer spending will remain low for some time. Many countries have already entered a recession or are expecting to do so over the coming months.
Hospitality
Cafés, restaurants, pubs, and clubs have been obliged to rethink their business models entirely. While some have been able to adapt by implementing a home delivery model, others have been unable to survive in this climate. Gambling, which was previously a significant source of income for pubs and clubs, has ground to a halt. Those businesses that are still open are operating on a skeleton staff, with millions of hospitality workers laid off.
Travel
Another major industry the novel coronavirus has almost wholly obliterated is the travel industry. With international and state borders closing and people asked to stay home, non-essential travel has been postponed indefinitely. These changes mean that hotels, cruises, and airlines are virtually unable to do business.
Imagine how impossible it would be to maintain a 1.5m distance from all other passengers on an airplane! Some people are speculating that the travel industry will never be the same again, with overseas travel becoming expensive and complicated. In future years, we are likely to see a lift in domestic tourism as an alternative.
Entertainment
People worldwide are turning to Netflix and Amazon Prime to stave off the boredom of being at home. But the question remains – how will the entertainment industry adapt? Filming of television shows and movies has been postponed, live sport has been canceled, and movie theatres and stadiums are losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in ticket sales. Music fans are mourning the loss of concerts and festivals, and no-one knows how or when these forms of entertainment will resume.
Gas and Oil
Has your petrol bill gone down dramatically since the outbreak of COVID-19? I know ours certainly has! And it isn’t just cars that have impacted the drop in demand for gas and oil. The lack of air travel also has a significant influence. The generally low level of demand means that prices have fallen amid a temporary oversupply. Investors aren’t confident that the prices will return to pre-coronavirus levels anytime soon, with the demand for environmentally friendly alternatives predicted to rise.
While no-one knows what a post-COVID lockdown world looks like, many business owners are counting down the days and dreaming of the moment when it will be safe to lift the restrictions.
