The COVID-19 pandemic that engulfed the entire world since the beginning of 2020 forced consumers to learn the new ways of life and unlearn the existing habits within the paradigm of time flexibility but location rigidity. As consumers adapt to the ‘new normal’ of life, they embrace new digital technologies to facilitate work, study, and consumption in a more convenient manner. These newly adopted habits are visible not only at the home front but also in public places in the form of using safety gears (masks, sanitizers) and using digital platforms (to ensure social distancing). The COVID-19 protocols have led to significant disruptions in consumer behavior and consequent responses of companies in the form of their preparedness for new norms of consumer behavior. This, in turn, is posing a challenge for the future sustainability and viability of businesses, necessitating strategic changes in the business model and the marketing strategies to remain apt to consumers’ current and future needs. Companies that were unable to adjust and adapt to these sudden changes posed by the pandemic perished very soon. The present paper investigated the impact of the pandemic on the behavior of Indian consumers and their consumption habits. Though there are many studies on epidemics and pandemics, their focus is mainly on the macro-issues of the economy. The present study tried to fill this research void by analyzing the behavior of consumers in India during the pandemic, as pointed out in the market research reports by prominent research analyst firms. The paper also highlighted the implications of the changed consumer behavior for marketers in the future.

1. Accenture. (2020). How will COVID-19 change the consumer? Data-driven insights into consumer behavior. Accenture COVID-19 consumer pulse research, 16th–22nd June 2020. www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/PDF-123/Accenture-COVID19-PulseSurvey-Research-PoV.pdf#zoom=40
2. Andreasen, A. R. (1994). Social marketing: Its definition and domain. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 13(1), 108–114. https://doi.org/10.1177/074391569401300109
3. Baker, S. R., Farrokhnia, R. A., Meyer, S., Pagel, M., & Yannelis, C. (2020). How does household spending respond to an epidemic? Consumption during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic (Working Paper No. 2020–30). https://bfi.uchicago.edu/wp-content/uploads/BFI_WP_202030.pdf
4. Boston Consulting Group. (2020). COVID-19 consumer sentiment research: Findings from wave 5. BCG consumer survey results, 20th July–02nd Aug 2020. https://images.assettype.com/afaqs/2020-08/bffeb739-4e51-465c-bbae-e7b68ac7e57d/COVID_19_India_Consumer_Sentiment_Survey_Wave_5_vf.pdf
5. Bounie, D., Camara, Y., & Galbraith, J. W. (2020). Consumers’ mobility, expenditure and online-offline substitution response to COVID-19: Evidence from French transaction data. https://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3588373
6. Chakraborty D., & Dash, G. (2022). ‘The New Normal’ and the strategies of marketers to attract consumers. Indian Journal of Marketing, 52(1), 58–62. https://doi.org/10.17010/ijom/2022/v52/i1/167652
7. Chakraborty, D., & Altekar, S. (2021). Work from home (WFH), COVID-19, and its impact on women. Prabandhan : Indian Journal of Management, 14(9), 22–29. https://doi.org/10.17010/pijom/2021/v14i9/166294
8. Chronopoulos, D. K., Lukas, M., & Wilson, J. O. (2020). Consumer spending responses to the COVID-19 pandemic: An assessment of Great Britain. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3586723
9. Dash, G., & Chakraborty, D. (2021). Transition to e-learning: By choice or by force–A cross-cultural and trans-national assessment. Prabandhan : Indian Journal of Management, 14(3), 8–23. https://doi.org/10.17010/pijom/2021/v14i3/158151
10. Deloitte. (2020). Impact of COVID-19 on consumer business in India. https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/in/Documents/consumer-business/in-consumer-impact-of-covid-19on-consumer-business-in-indianoexp.pdf
11. Eger, L., Komárková, L., Egerová, D., & Mičík, M. (2021). The effect of COVID-19 on consumer shopping behaviour: Generational cohort perspective. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 61, 102542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102542
12. Engle, J. (2020, March 24). How is the coronavirus outbreak affecting your life? The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/20/learning/how-is-the-coronavirus-outbreakaffecting-your-life.html
13. Ernst & Young India. (2020). COVID-19 and emergence of a new consumer products landscape in India. https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_in/topics/consumer-products-retail/2020/06/covid-19-and-emergence-of-new-consumer-products-landscape-in-india.pdf?download
14. Fanelli, R. M. (2021). Changes in the food-related behaviour of Italian consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Foods, 10(1), 169. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10010169
15. Flatters, P., & Willmott, M. (2009). Understanding the post-recession consumer. Harvard Business Review, 7(8), 106–112. https://hbr.org/2009/07/understanding-the-postrecession-consumer
16. IBM Newsroom. (2020, May 1). COVID-19 is significantly altering U.S. consumer behaviour and plans post-crisis. https://newsroom.ibm.com/2020-05-01-IBM-Study-COVID-19-Is-Significantly-Altering-U-S-Consumer-Behavior-and-Plans-Post-Crisis?printable
17. Kantar. (2020, May 13). Impact of COVID-19 on consumer behaviour, attitudes and expectations. https://iabeurope.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Kantar_Covid-19-Barometer_IAB-Europe-Webinar-Presentation_Final.pdf
18. Kotler, P., & Zaltman, G. (1971). Social marketing: An approach to planned social change. Journal of Marketing, 35(3), 3–12. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F002224297103500302
19. KPMG. (2020). Embedding resilience. https://home.kpmg/in/en/home/insights/2020/03/thebusiness-implications of-coronavirus.html
20. Kumar, R., & Abdin, M. S. (2021). Impact of epidemics and pandemics on consumption pattern: Evidence from Covid-19 pandemic in rural-urban India. Asian Journal of Economics and Banking, 5(1), 2–14. https://doi.org/10.1108/AJEB-12-2020-0109
21. Laato, S., Islam, A.K., Farooq, A., & Dhir, A. (2020). Unusual purchasing behavior during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic: The stimulus-organism-response approach. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 57, 102224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102224
22. Lefebvre, R. C., & Flora, J. A. (1988). Social marketing and public health intervention. Health Education & Behavior, 15(3), 299–315. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/109019818801500305
23. Malviya, S. (2020, August 11). Increased demand for groceries lifts household consumption to a two year high in April-June. The Economics Times. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/fmcg/increaseddemand-for-groceries-liftshousehold-consumption-to-a-two-year-high-inapriljune/articleshow/77470680.cms
24. McKinsey & Company. (2020, August). Perspectives on retail and consumer goods. https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Industries/Retail/Our%20Insights/Perspectives%20on%20retail%20and%20consumer%20goods%20Number%208/Perspectives-on-Retail-and-Consumer-Goods_Issue-8.pdf
25. Nielsen. (2020, July 17). Nielsen: COVID-19 evolving consumer dynamics. https://images.assettype.com/afaqs/2020-07/c40d7804-5017-44de-ae17-a7dfdb8db078/NielsenCOVID_19_Evolving_Consumer_Dynamics___Edition_4_17July2020ff__1_.pdf
26. Perappadan, B. S. (2020, March 11). COVID-19 now a pandemic, says WHO; India confirms 60 cases. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/health/covid-19-is-now-a-pandemic says who /article 31043 206.ece
27. Pillania, R. K. (2020a). COVID-19: A huge opportunity for innovation in marketing. Indian Journal of Marketing, 50(8–9), 80–87. https://doi.org/10.17010/ijom/2020/v50/i8-9/154693
28. Pillania, R. K. (2020b). COVID-19: An opportunity to create a comprehensive and holistic Indian management perspective. Prabandhan : Indian Journal of Management, 13(5–7), 26–29. https://doi.org/10.17010/pijom/2020/v13i5-7/153079
29. Sehgal, R., Khanna, P., Malviya, M., & Dubey, A. M. (2021). Shopping safety practices mutate consumer buying behaviour during COVID-19 pandemic. Vision: The Journal of Business Perspective, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/09722629211010990
30. Sheth, J. (2020). Impact of Covid-19 on consumer behavior: Will the old habits return or die? Journal of Business Research, 117, 280–283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.05.059
31. Sutton, S. M., Balch, G. I., & Lefebvre, R. C. (1995). Strategic questions for consumer-based health communications. Public Health Reports, 110(6), 725–733. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1381816/
32. Svajdova, L. (2021). Consumer behaviour during pandemic of COVID-19. Journal of International Business Research and Marketing, 6(3), 34–37. https://doi.org/10.18775/jibrm.1849-8558.2015.63.3005
33. Ting, H., Ling, J., & Cheah, J. H. (2020). It will go away!? Pandemic crisis and business in Asia. Asian Journal of Business Research, 10(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.14707/ajbr.200072
34. Van der Wielen, W., & Barrios, S. (2021). Economic sentiment during the COVID pandemic: Evidence from search behaviour in the EU. Journal of Economics and Business, 115, 105970. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconbus.2020.105970