With the restaurant and hotel market shrinking, bulk importers of popular foods from other countries see drastic drop in demand from the HoReCa industry. They too are trying to reach individuals, offering quality products with home delivery, even if in the short term only, just to sell the stock already at hand and hope their regular buyers will be back in business soon.
Many are hoping to earn on the immediate demand, shifting to personal protection equipment or medical gear, where supply is still too low for the growing demand, even with President Trump finally utilising the Defense Production Act (DPA). Those ordered by the administration to shift to crucial supplies are, at least for now, too busy to complain about how the economic shift is impacting them.
But it will leave a mark, even if only by forcing companies to rethink how flexible their manufacturing power is. Fresh industries like 3D printing are scoring huge victories as their model puts flexibility at the top of the list of principles. In a world where you can print anything, professionals and amateurs are printing tons of medical supplies 24/7 and printers are selling just great.
Across the economy we can see the shift from paper money to cashless payments get even faster, with cash being feared as a means of coronavirus transmission. Even more, corporations are looking at further ways to reduce all paper use, despite the resource already being in decline. It's quite possible that even if the crisis only lasts a few months, it will have a lasting effect on how to exchange goods.
