Just one quarter (24%) of 'direct to consumer' (D2C) brands posted stronger monthly visits during the COVID-19 crisis, compared to their 2019 peak, a new study has found.
The report, by PipeCandy, analysed some 1,000 D2C brands across various categories, including food and beverages.
It found that 36% of brands declined more than 50% from their respective 2019 peaks.
Strong Categories
The only D2C categories to achieve stronger monthly visits during the COVID-19 crisis (compared to their 2019 peak) were fitness, pet and meal-kit brands, the study found, while grocery, wine and spirits and cosmetics all performed above average.
Pipecandy also noted that most of the 'peaks' achieved last year were launch- or PR-related, and did not sustain over the course of the year.
'We hypothesise that what we see in 2020 across categories is likely the real demand and what we say in 2019 was inflated,' Pipecandy said.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
