Consumer psyche has altered permanently and will witness a paradigm shift post-COVID, reveals a consumer study on fashion industry conducted by Liva, an ingredient fabric brand from the house of Aditya Birla Group, in association with MRM, the digital arm of McCann World Group.
The study was conducted to understand the mindset of consumers. “Being a thought leader in the segment of sustainability and natural cellulose based fibres, Liva conducted this study to understand the mindset of consumers and to help its partner brands and other industry stakeholders,” Liva said about the report titled ‘A Brave New World’ based on the consumer study. The study, which has a sample size of 440 Indians from across the country, explores findings around how the world has changed given the pandemic scenario and how the fashion industry as a whole is going to evolve. The study breaks assumptions that many might have and gives us a clear picture of what the consumers are thinking and doing.
“The idea behind this consumer study was to understand how to tackle this unforeseen pandemic and get a pulse of what our audience is feeling. Liva has always been an enabler and leader in assisting the industry to understand where the future of fashion is headed and what the consumers need. Keeping this thought in mind, the study was our way to gauge the consumer sentiments during the pandemic, something that brands and companies have never experienced before. Businesses are going to have to re-strategies and alter their services and messaging basis the new ‘normal’. It’s great to see that the future of fashion is going to be more responsible,” said Srishti Sawhney, president and global brand head, Grasim Industries, Pulp & Fibre Business. Divided into three broad categories, the report talks about how the lockdown has changed people’s lives and how brands have reacted to it, what the consumer sentiments will be post lockdown, and how brands will move forward.
The future of fashion will be around natural, durable and bio-degradable, basis the insights. The customer has had time to reflect during the lockdown and is now more inclined towards sustainability and eco-friendly fashion. Virtual fashion shows and department shows will comprise the new normal.
“Virtual reality is going to be the new reality moving forward. A great online experience is what’s going to attract customers, so brands and companies will have to innovate and focus more on the digital and virtual experiences. Offline shopping will become a secondary medium, we can expect to see rise in virtual shopping stores, models to try to on clothes through the screen etc. We’re going to witness a renewed revolution of the digital era with newer technologies and applications,” said Rishi Sharma, assistant vice president-Marketing, Birla Cellulose and head digital of brand Liva. Given the looming financial crisis, 35 per cent of the consumers stated they would buy clothes at discounted rates, giving a bigger push to the growing discount culture.
Work from home has given rise to a new vertical of clothing which will gain popularity as we move ahead. While the consumers have moved towards self-reliance, work out videos online and personal hygiene measures related queries have been on the rise.
The data also indicated that people are eagerly looking forward to things going back to “normal”. Contrary to the popular belief that online shopping is on the rise, the data clearly indicated that 30 per cent of the customers said they are actually not shopping online. In addition to that, 40 per cent of the consumers also said they will be delaying clothing purchases as well as vacations. Given the low sentiments, purchases will now be need-driven and not want-driven.
The fashion industry as a whole came together to support the cause of staying indoors and saluting the frontline workers in order to not lose touch with their end consumers on social media. Social media consumption has been higher than ever with 49 per cent of the people stating it as their go-to solution for boredom.
