Executive Briefing
Riding out the e-commerce dip
Are we in the early stages of an e-commerce recession? Or just a few short-term bumps?
By Dan Frommer on Saturday, May 7, 2022 at 8:00 am
We have known for a long time that much of the accelerated growth in US e-commerce adoption during the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic was forced and temporary — a “pull-forward” of future growth.
What’s new now is that we’re feeling the other end of the wave: The trough where we’re lapping the one- and two-year marks of big events.
These include the initial pandemic lockdown (two years ago in March and April), the vaccine-fueled “reopening” resumption of consumer and retail mobility (last spring), and the last wave of consumer stimulus checks (last March).
Add record inflation to the mix — and now concerns of an imminent recession — and it’s no surprise that consumers and markets have changed their behavior, resulting in some unexpected curves.
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Hi, I’m Dan Frommer and this is The New Consumer, a publication about how and why people spend their time and money.
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