The COVID-19 outbreak is only a few months old, but it is already affecting businesses all over the world.
Here are the businesses that will be positively and negatively affected by the pandemic.
Those that will suffer
1. Tourism
Tourism is one of the businesses that will suffer the most from the pandemic. The negative effect will concern every branch of tourism, from hotels and resorts to tourism agents. By different estimates, up to a quarter of workers in the tourism industry will lose their jobs during and immediately after the pandemic.
2. Physical retail
Even though not all 150 countries affected by the pandemic are currently on lockdown, more and more people prefer not to leave their house at all, let alone go shopping. Most physical stores selling clothes, electronics, cosmetics, and other non-essential goods, will suffer from the COVID-2019 outbreak.
3. Entertainment
Local cinemas and theatres have halted their performances for at least several weeks. Major sporting and entertainment events are being cancelled every day. It will take months for the entertainment industry to recover from the pandemic, and some businesses may not recover at all.
4. Transportation
With more and more countries closing their borders and preventing people from going in and out of the country in an effort to stop the pandemic, airlines, trains, and cruise ships will definitely suffer. Some airlines have cancelled all travel for weeks and even months, which will affect both the owners and the staff.
Businesses that will thrive
The good news is that not all businesses will suffer due to the coronavirus pandemic. For some businesses, the pandemic will become a fruitful time and will help them grow. Here are those businesses.
1. Delivery services
More and more people decide not to leave the house, but they still want to get the essentials and other goods delivered to them. Delivery services, who can deliver everything from clothes to medicine, will thrive during the epidemic and are already looking for more drivers and delivery workers to fulfil the increased number of orders.
2. Streaming services
When you spend most of your time at home, there isn’t much you can do in terms of entertainment. This is why streaming services for videos and music like Netflix and Google Play Music are experiencing a rise in the number of paying subscribers who want to keep themselves and the members of their families entertained.
3. Online stores and marketplaces
With people resorting to online to do both essential and non-essential shopping, now is a good time to be an online store owner or a marketplace seller, which means it’s the perfect opportunity to install the free Jiji app and start selling online to fellow Nigerians.
