Who would’ve thought, on that regular day in mid-March 2020, when we were told to take a two-week break from our work and our schools, that the world and life we knew would drastically change? Covid has changed the way we approach life. Many of us have learned to appreciate the evanescence of our existence. We’ve become, I believe, kinder, closer to our families, more in-the-moment, less materialistic, more into experiences.
Here are some of the ways life has changed irrevocably since Covid.
The workplace
Businesses that require 100 percent face-to-face attendance may find it harder to retain or source quality employees. Many employers who once were adamant to push employees into going back to work fulltime are now re-thinking their rules as valued workers leave to find jobs that will allow them to keep the “work-life” balance the pandemic afforded them.
In a recent Gallup poll, a report of employees in the US show that at least 45 percent of full-time workers are now either working from home or just part-time, a drastic reduction from 83 percent in April 2020. The increase is just 17 percent from the height of the pandemic, which means not a lot of people have returned full time to their workplace. Ninety-one percent of workers say they hope to continue working remotely. While working from home seems like “just an option” for many, Covid has made it clear working from home is a necessity for women. With many schools still doing blended learning, mothers with work have had to stall their careers or resign to supervise their children at home. A phenomenon workplace experts call “Covid motherhood penalty,” the bulk of childcare resting on mothers will see more women leaving jobs or holding off career advancements. In the US, new research by the National Women’s Law Center shows that post-pandemic job recovery has been slower for women. Over a million men rejoined the labor force immediately after the pandemic restrictions eased compared to only 39,000 women.
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Many employers are now re-thinking their rules as valued workers leave to find jobs that will allow them to keep the ‘work-life’ balance the pandemic afforded them.
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Consuming entertainment
I just bought concert tickets to next year’s Arctic Monkeys concert on the open Filinvest grounds. Enchanted Kingdom, for the first time ever, held a concert called “Salo-Salo Fest” for three days featuring Urbandub, Mayonnaise, Clara Benin, Barbie Almalbis, and other current OPM favorites on its open grounds. Cinemas and concerts are coming back, but masking, social distancing, pre-registration, vaccination proof are added measures for safety.
The world’s biggest studios have learned to tap other platforms like Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon, HBO, even Youtube for additional revenues. The pandemic boom for video streaming services saw a meteoric rise in subscribers. In 2020 and 2021, Netflix added about 55 million subscribers, a huge bulk came from the first six months of isolation. This unprecedented growth may have slowed down, no thanks in part to other platforms competing for Millennials and Gen Z, whose attention are divided among other forms of entertainment like Youtube and Tiktok. Consulting firms, like Deloitte in its 2022 digital media trends survey, say that Netflix’s viewers are older—in the 24 and 44 segment—rather than 18 to 24, which might cause the slowing down of viewership in paid streaming platforms.
Cinemas have seen an increase in private screening rentals, where people host watch parties for movies they want to catch on the big screen. The rates, still about ₱500 per person with a drink and a tub of popcorn, are expensive but not prohibitive. But you need to fulfill a minimum of about 20 for many theaters. Tom & Jerry, a 2021 film based on the 80-year-old cartoon, earned a respectable $14.1 million at the US box office on its opening weekend. The film was given an “enormous boost” by private theater rentals, Bloomberg reported.
Private theater rentals is the cultural innovation we needed—and continue to need as many of us are still paranoid—so we can watch movies we love with people we love. But streaming services will continue to earn big. After all, they are so much cheaper.
Shopping
I used to love shopping, browsing through the racks for that a-ha moment of finding a perfect piece. Until I discovered how online shopping can save me so much time when I can just key in words to help me narrow down my choices. “Bohemian, XL,” I click, and every piece displayed on my screen is a piece I would love to hang in my closet. Or, if I want something from a store and not off an online shop, I could just message my “personal assistant” at Rustan’s, a service debuted by the luxury retailer during the pandemic, and they can just choose and present options for me. Globally, technology has kept up with Covid restrictions to cater to shoppers. There’s the Zyler app where you can upload your measurements and selfie, and you can digitally “try on” clothes from many retailers. It’s a portent of things to come as retail moves toward omnichannel shopping, which the pandemic made necessary too soon. Simply put, the omnichannel experience is allowing your customers to buy whatever they want, wherever they want, from your brand. They can be searching on your app, put in in their cart, visit your store, try on the item, and proceed to buy because the app has a points or loyalty system in place. Or if they don’t have the funds for it yet, they can wait. Crate and Barrel in the US has a buy online, pick up in store option, or buy online, pay later option. DSW also has options online where you can check the shoes you want, and then check where they are available, which saves you time and money, instead of rushing to stores, only to discover they don’t have it in your size.