One of the big changes we are going through in the Corona days is in the culture of consumption • The place of dresses and luxury brands took pajamas, shopping trips - quality time at home • So how is the crisis likely to affect our waste? • These are the predictions 

• Preparations for the opening of Azrieli Mall Tel Aviv

  Photo: 

  Joshua Joseph

Israeli-branded consumers are currently changing due to Corona's disease. During our time at home, pajamas became the most sought after item in the closet. 

This reality leads to an intriguing question, what will happen to the top brands the day after Corona, the day we can go shopping. Do we, who have become accustomed to not consuming brands, continue in the same way with the understanding that this is not necessarily necessary or whether we want to pamper ourselves more. There is no one answer to this question. We have asked many retail and economics experts and have varied answers on this. 

According to Dr. Renana Peres, a marketing and brand researcher at the Hebrew University's School of Business: "From past experience, after major crises such as the world's great wars, one of two things happens to people about brands, not necessarily in actual buying. Suppose everyone has money and is in crisis, the question is whether something has changed in the importance of buying brands. As mentioned, there can be two options that both happened and both are extreme. 

"On the one hand, people can say to themselves, 'I get on with the pajamas, I understand what's important in life and it's health and family, and the branding thing seems empty and unnecessary to me,' and so people will return to simplicity. See it in World War II in the early years after recovery. "B had buying power and they didn't buy luxury brands because they said that's not what matters now after what they've been through. Even after September 11, which was a very significant event, people gathered and searched for basic values. There was an endless melancholy feeling and people did not buy brands. 

"The second reaction can be just the opposite. People will tell themselves that they haven't bought anything for months and lives just once. They can say they've seen the fragility of life and then go to compensation and buy very aggressively. Then they'll bomb restaurants and start renovating the house as the buying power We also saw this happening after epidemics, especially after the SARS and after natural disasters such as the tsunami in Thailand, for example, there right after they rallied, there was a mad rush to the malls like never before. These were not Zara's but Prada's, because people Wanted. 

"Another example is after the fall of the Berlin Wall. People who have been suppressed for a few years have attacked the stores like someone who has not seen food in many years. The question of where this will go in the case of the Corona, when everything is speculated. It depends on how long it will take. Yes, we will see a wave of compensation. If it is, for example, a matter of the year, we will see the symptom of consumers avoiding the brand. Usually, the sense of compensation happens after short-term events. In long-term events, people get used to more convened life and less visibility. Israel is that if they now open the malls on the assumption that it is safe to leave and there is no corona, there is going to be an explosion. It will take a year, people will adopt new habits. "

Peres asked about the impact of the financial situation, "If people don't have money, they won't buy super brands, of course. The question is what happens if there is a budget, and the question is whether they will buy a super-brand or simpler bag and save the rest. A big layer of big unemployed people, women won't buy a Gucci bag when their friends are unemployed, it might not be socially legitimate for those who have money to buy super brands, because it wouldn't be right to broadcast it in a situation where people have no money They will perpetuate the gap. 

"It's an aspect that is also related to the value atmosphere. If the value atmosphere is back to simplicity, people won't buy. If the value atmosphere is a" once in a lifetime ", super brands will also make specials for everyone to participate in the celebration. That's the key question, what is the value atmosphere? The day after, if the atmosphere is now 'buy-in', market forces will see what they can buy, and super-brands will adapt, for example, through cheaper series, capsule collections, end-of-season throughout the season and more. ".

Spottango, a retail startup that connects physical retail and retail space to independent brands and Israeli designers in a daily rental pop-up model, has insights into what has happened since street stores began operating and also hypotheses of what's to come in the future. 

Trading in a new method

According to Daniel Shoshani, CEO of the company: "A week ago, street trading began, and what we saw is that people probably have a short memory. It's been a month and a half since the Corona crisis began. This dimension of time is not enough to change consumption habits and maybe even vice versa. People during this period saved money. Their expenses during this period were on essential products such as food, pharma and medicines, and they had no expenses on Life Style, brands and jewelry, except during Passover, so they bought gifts for their relatives. Not all the children have returned to school yet, so in the center of Tel Aviv you see whole families doing street shopping from the time the street shops opened. Street stores are easier to comply with by the purple character. Some have told us, for example, on Sheinkin Street, that this has been one of their strongest periods for 15 years. This is a very strong midweek movement. 

"This is because, as mentioned, because the children are not in the frames and also because people want to vent outside. Big also saw crowds of people outside the shops. We expect people to continue to buy, because they will not fly in the summer and therefore buy more and spend more." Shoshani added: "People already want to indulge themselves in new swimsuits and new fashion items for the summer. Event halls will open at the end of the month, and this is affecting fashion items. I predict that during the holidays, five months from now, we will see a full return and even more compared to the holidays of 2019, which were excellent in terms of consumerism.

"In terms of brands, this is a world that has changed before the Corona with a lot of challenges, and the Corona has just accelerated processes. In Dizengoff, for example, and from the stage to the harbor, there are many assets with a rental sign. I believe there will be many pop-up shops with no long-term commitment. In addition, brands Hybrid Retail: They will strengthen their Internet operation and their physical activities will be short-term and precise to suit their audience. It's a process that Corona has accelerated. Now it will be on steroids. We'll see less huge flag stores but more pop-up stores in the form Measured and without risk. 

"Regarding buying brands, even before Corona there was a trend for brands for every pocket that caters to a wide range of customers. I think we will see consumer behavior in both directions. On the one hand, people will not spend unknowingly. On the other hand, brands now have a lot of merchandise that they had to sell already Two months ago, we will see a decline in brand prices and demand, and on the other hand there will also be demand for equal buying per pocket, less bombastic shopping. "

Another intriguing area to study the corona's effects on is the world of optics. According to Jacob Halperin, the owner of Optica Halperin: "In the world of optics, warehouses are full of merchandise, which is valid for all brands of sunglasses and optical glasses. What is happening is that manufacturers are holding two major exhibitions: March and September. March is the world's largest exhibition in Milan. The merchandise is selected at the exhibition and within a month it is already in stores, since the exhibition was canceled and it was postponed to January 2021. In fact, the warehouses of all the brands in the world were filled as early as March 3. Once the exhibition was canceled, all Europe came to a standstill, it started with Italy, Austria and France and Moved to the US. Nobody pulled merchandise. The warehouses are full, and anyone who wants to buy merchandise will pay and take it. "

Decreased by tens of percent

So what does this do to the consumer? Halperin explains, "If, for example, Lacoste, a very popular, well-known and popular brand, sells for about NIS 800 and after discounts for NIS 600, today it will pay NIS 400-350, which is almost like our cost on a normal day. Christian housing costs NIS 1,500. And now it will cost NIS 500, brands of sunglasses will cost NIS 250-150. The effect is very simple - all those who would buy unbranded glasses can now buy, if they want, brands at very cheap prices. " 

However, it should be noted that the mentioned brands are sold to Optica Halperin on parallel imports and not from the official importers. Halperin said: "These brands are being sold to us on parallel imports. Of course, the importers will not officially lower prices. They will want to keep a high price. We will break this price because once we bring in parallel imports, they will have no choice. Down". 

Regarding consuming brands after the Corona, Halperin says, "People will always want to pamper themselves and make up for the hard days they had. If a customer sat closed at home, locked in with the kids and didn't pamper himself, then if he doesn't have the money now to indulge himself in something like thousands of shekels New or traveling abroad, he will indulge himself in something small. What is this little thing? Certainly it could be sunglasses or new eyewear. So I do see a movement that will come from people who want to make themselves happy. Not to mention that glasses are something that is on the face and does not hide. People always want to look good and up to date. So I expect that many customers will come to take advantage of it. "So don't we see prices like two pairs of glasses for NIS 5,000?" Long ago it doesn't. "