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Since Covid-19, there has been a dramatic shift in consumers' mindsets globally towards healthier lifestyle habits. Global digital market research company, Borderless Access, set out to find out what South Africans changed about their lifestyles and how food and beverage companies can help support consumers.

Renewed focus on health and fitness

Many South Africans used the weeks of lockdown as an opportunity to reset their health and fitness routines.

Of the 300 South Africans surveyed, 74% said they now consider health and fitness to be very important with eating healthily and exercising being placed at the top of their list of healthy habits. This was followed by eating more fruits and vegetables, drinking more water and more home-cooked food.  

“Covid-19 and the lockdowns over the last year definitely inspired South Africans to focus on being healthy and fit,” says Bev Tigar Bassett, AVP - Business Development at Borderless Access. “The most common changes we found people made during the pandemic was introducing home workouts into their routines and eating more healthily.”

From wearing masks and washing our hands more carefully than ever to working from home COVID, has changed our behaviour in dramatic and measurable ways. The virus has also had a versatile impact on consumer behaviour, with large swathes of the world’s population changing their well-worn habits within a few short weeks. Following on from our previous pieces about work-life post lockdown and how the pandemic has affected attitudes towards health, we have taken a deep dive into the altered shopping habits of people living in Sub-Saharan Africa and globally.

Globally 34% of people claim to be shopping online more than they did before the pandemic. Sub Saharan Africa hasn’t followed this trend to the same degree with only 16% of South Africans and 27% of Nigerians shopping online more than before. However, this does not mean that people in these countries are unafraid of the virus. Rather people appear to be buying in bulk and visiting physical stores less often than they did before, complementing this shopping with online buying. Only 15% of worldwide respondents say they have not altered their shopping habits. Nigeria (14%) mirrors this but a greater number of South Africans (21%) have not changed the way they shop. Of the three Sub-Saharan countries in question, the last amount of Kenyans (10%) have not changed the way they shop.

The global COVID-19 pandemic has pivoted the world in countless new directions, a significant one being the exponential embrace of digital engagement. The field of health care is, of course, one that has been at the forefront of many pandemic-related changes. Medical professionals have had to adapt their entire way of working – and the public has responded. Borderless Access brings you findings from ten countries on how modes of medical consultation have and will continue to change, post lockdown.

As South Africa, along with the rest of the world, strives to jump-start the economy after its unprecedented hiatus, Borderless Access shares the financial and banking behaviour of our citizens. We provide a glimpse into how South Africans bank, what financial decisions they have made, both pre and during COVID-19, and understand where they invest their hard-earned money.

Liquor stores nationally are witnessing enormous queues and hefty sales as lockdown level 3 marks a lifting of the ban on alcohol sales. However, the market is expected to witness a shift in the consumers’ alcohol-buying behaviour as they settle into level 3. Borderless Access therefore, conducted a study to understand this change in behaviour and how it might impact the alcohol industry.

As digitization makes its way into Africa across sectors and industries, digital payment methods are being offered as safe and convenient alternatives to traditional options.

This past month's lockdown has had an interesting impact on how South Africans consume media. Coupled with the millions of South Africans staying home and the need for ongoing information about the coronavirus, South African media expectations have changed. By the end of March 2020, South Africa had a total of 1,353 COVID-19 cases and five deaths. One month on, we enter stage four of the South African lockdown with these numbers soaring to 5,350 cases and 103 deaths.