# A NEW ERA OF RETAIL **How retailers, manufacturers and wholesalers** **are adapting their businesses to respond to** **the coronavirus** ## The calm during the storm. Retailers, manufacturers and wholesalers find creative ways to adapt their businesses to challenges the coronavirus has presented. ## How two consumer goods startups pivoted as the coronavirus hit Vybes, which had been selling its CBD-infused beverages mainly through stores, cafes and gyms, quickly shifted focus to ecommerce and saw immediate success. Meanwhile, the founder of Nera, a high-end brand of sneakers made in Italy, put off its planned July launch, figuring that few online shoppers would spend $260 and up on kicks as the economy wobbled. Online grocery shopping has become a mainstream part of American life during the COVID-19 pandemic. Retailers have had to act fast to keep up with the demand. ## How Protolabs plays a crucial role in the COVID-19 battle The ecommerce-based provider of digital manufacturing services grew first-quarter revenue as it provided critical parts for medical equipment used to fight the pandemic. In turn, Protolabs is gaining exposure for its pandemic- related work on social media and showing more manufacturers how its digital model helps solve their production challenges. ## Crisis intervention: Retailers adapt supply chains and marketing efforts in the face of coronavirus Retailers are getting creative in their approaches to deal with unforeseen challenges from coronavirus. Luxury retailer Olivela and Drinks.com, which provides wine ecommerce technology platforms for retailers and is the parent company for online retailers Wine Insider and Martha Stewart Wine Co., are pivoting quickly to modify sourcing and marketing during the crisis. # THE CALM DURING THE STORM Retailers, manufacturers and wholesalers find creative ways to adapt their businesses to challenges the coronavirus has presented. **Retailers, manufacturers and wholesalers** are finding creative and savvy ways to adapt their businesses to challenges the coronavirus has presented. Businesses like Anomalie and others have shifted to survive and—sometimes even thrive—during the crisis. Some like Anomalie are modifying customer service approaches, while others are making marketing, fulfillment and website management tweaks to tackle the new issues and complexities the virus presents. Anomalie stylists who work with brides on designs also reached out proactively to all brides working with the retailer to reassure them their dresses would not be delayed. Voorhees Means also went on Instagram Live to answer brides’ concerns about the coronavirus. “We wanted to make sure we were putting it out there that we were feeling really confident their dresses wouldn’t be impacted,” she says. The changes due to the pandemic haven’t all been bad. Because many bridal boutiques shuttered during the outbreak, the custom web- only retailer saw a surge in website traffic, and a 25% increase in signups to its website when the COVID-19 outbreak began. Another positive way the coronavirus has impacted customer service at Anomalie is that brides are more open to video conferencing. Stylists are conducting more consultations via video using Zoom rather than over the phone, Voorhees Means says. ## How two consumer goods startups pivoted as the coronavirus hit Eppers is the founder and CEO of Vybes, which sells bottled beverages infused with CBD, or cannabidiol, a derivative of cannabis that some believe eases stress. Since founding the business three years ago, he’s mainly been selling through bricks-and-mortar businesses. However, he quickly shifted to selling online. **While DiPietrantonio’s was pushing back** the introduction of his new online brand, Eppers refocused Vybes on ecommerce in March as the stores that accounted for most of his business shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Eppers had been operating an ecommerce site at IDrinkVybes.com, but it was a small part of his business. With most of his retail outlets shuttered, he took three steps to boost online sales. # GROCERY RETAILERS ADAPT AS CORONAVIRUS UPENDS SHOPPING PATTERNS Online grocery shopping has become a mainstream part of American life during the COVID-19 pandemic. Retailers have had to act fast to keep up with the demand. U.S. online sales of consumer packaged goods (CPG)—the kinds of items typically sold in grocery stores—grew 30.2%, for the week ended May 23, compared with the same period a year earlier, according to data from research and polling firm Nielsen and Rakuten Intelligence, which tracks online sales via consumers’ email receipts. For the 12 weeks ended May 23, online CPG sales increased 53.9%, reflecting a significant surge in online CPG sales earlier in the COVID-19 crisis. The most significant web sales increase among CPG categories for the week ended May 23 was food, up 44% year-over-year, Nielsen and Rakuten found. That was followed by a 30.1% surge in online sales of household care items. Online sales in the health and beauty care category grew by 20.8%. Baby care web sales grew 9%. # HOW PROTOLABS PLAYS A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THE COVID-19 BATTLE **Protolabs, which routinely does about** 29% of its sales in the medical device market, experienced less demand during the quarter in other manufacturing markets, including automotive and industrial machinery. # CRISIS INTERVENTION: RETAILERS ADAPT SUPPLY CHAINS AND MARKETING EFFORTS IN THE FACE OF CORONAVIRUS Retailers are getting creative in their approaches to deal with unforeseen challenges from the coronavirus. Luxury retailer Olivela and Drinks.com, which provides wine ecommerce technology platforms for retailers and is the parent company for online retailers Wine Insider and Martha Stewart Wine Co., are pivoting quickly to modify sourcing and marketing during the crisis.