occurred and how people were feeling about the world they now inhabit. This deep dive into the behaviours, hopes, fears and values of Australian shoppers revealed some important insights for the retailers who serve them. What emerges is a powerful counterpoint to the mainstream economic narratives that are dominating the day-to-day headlines. More Australians are worried about the economic impacts of Covid than the health impacts. While nearly one in two – 48.7 per cent – are concerned for their own health, the cohort concerned about their financial situation is increasing again – 72.5 per cent. This economic anxiety is related to future events, rather than past ones, with the data showing that for more than three in four consumers (75.2 per cent), funds available have either remained the same or increased. Consumers looking to reduce their spending will be targeting household budgets for travel, entertainment, and events (44.3 per cent), holistically assessing their spending to adjust it to their needs (35.3 per cent) and buying cheaper essential goods (26.8 per cent). More than one in four (25.8 per cent) will be looking to increase their savings, and a similar figure (27.5 per cent) say their spending will remain unchanged. Focus on health and happiness It accompanies another shift in consumer sentiment where values are changing to be centered around health, home, and family. Compared to attitudes pre-pandemic, the health and happiness of their family was more important to 62.3 per cent of consumers, and spending time with family was rated as more important by 60.1 per cent. Of those consumers who’ve made significant lifestyle changes over the past year, a clear majority (63.7 per cent) were seeking to improve their physical and/or mental health. Perhaps the single largest behavioural marker associated with the sentiment changes we recorded was a rising preference in cooking at home, from scratch. More than eight in ten people (83.3 per cent) are now doing this at least once a week in Australia, up from 74 per cent prior to the pandemic. Consumers back themselves to make informed decisions about healthy purchasing, with nearly eight in ten (78.8 per cent) saying they already have a good understanding of what is healthy. However, this confidence does not extend to ethical purchasing, with only a minority (39.9 per cent) saying they have a good understanding of which brands are sustainable and ethical. Around three in four shoppers want to see labelling uniformity – a traffic light system or similar to help them make decisions about which brands are healthy (73.5 per cent) and sustainable (72.5 per cent). Continued appreciation for bricks-and-mortar Finally, while the much-heralded shift to online has definitely occurred, with online ordering of products across all categories at a reported 235 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, there is a significant attachment to physical sites, particularly for supermarket and perishables shopping. More than 87 per cent of consumers said they would feel a sense of loss if the physical supermarket were no longer available, closely followed by 82.2 per cent for local markets and 82 per cent for cafes. To put this in perspective, only 74.5 per cent of people said they would feel a sense of loss if their own workplace disappeared, and a mere 56 per cent would mourn the disappearance of the gym. This much data might be confusing at first, but it’s highly relevant. In order to make informed and empathetic business decisions, we must respond not only to the observed behaviours of consumers, but we must show we can understand and connect with their inner worlds. The rapid increase in online grocery ordering might lead some retailers to think they can switch off their physical locations, but the fact that consumers would feel such profound loss at their absence indicates that the picture is far more complex than mere behavioural data would suggest. As we move into the post-pandemic world, intelligence relating to the sentiments, attitudes and values of customers will be just as important as data gleaned from their observed behaviours. The retailers who can build the most complete and dynamic picture of their customers will be those who can thrive in an era of fragmented touchpoints, fluctuating relationships, and re-ordered priorities.