A STUDY ON THE CHANGE IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR FOR

FMCG INDUSTRY- PRE & DURING COVID

DISSERTATION

Submitted to CHRIST (Deemed to be University) in partial

Fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the degree of

Bachelor of Business Administration

(HONORS)

By

Vedant Singh Tosaria

Reg. No. 1823357

Under the guidance of

Dr Aarthy C

Assistant Professor

School of Business Studies and Management

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS STUDIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

CHRIST (DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY)

BGR CAMPUS

BANNERGHATTA ROAD, HULIMAVU

BENGALURU – 76

2020 – 2021
 DECLARATION

I, Vedant Singh Tosaria (Reg. No. 1823357), hereby declare that this project report titled
“A study on the change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- pre & during
Covid”, submitted to CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru in partial fulfilment
of the requirements for the award of the degree of Bachelor of Business Administration
(Honors) is a record of original work carried out by me during the academic year 2020-2021
under the guidance of Dr Aarthy C, Assistant Professor, School of Business Studies and
Management, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru has not been previously
formed the basis for the award of any Degree, Diploma or any other similar title of
recognition to any candidate of this or any other University or Institution.

Place: Bengaluru Vedant Singh Tosaria

Date: 15.04.2021 Reg. No. 1823357

 CERTIFICATE BY GUIDE

This is to certify that this project report titled “A study on the change in Consumer
Behaviour for FMCG Industry- pre & during Covid”, submitted to Christ (Deemed to be
University), Bengaluru, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree
of Bachelor of Business Administration (Honors) is a record of original work carried out
by Vedant Singh Tosaria (Reg. No. 1823357) during the academic year 2020-21 under my
guidance and it has not been previously formed the basis for the award of any Degree,
Diploma or any other similar title of recognition to any candidate of this or any other University
or Institution.

Place: Bengaluru Dr. Aarthy C

Date: 15.04.2021 (Assistant Professor)

School of Business
Studies and Management
Christ (Deemed to be)
University
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that this project report titled “A study on the change in Consumer Behaviour
for FMCG Industry- pre & during Covid”, submitted to Christ (Deemed to be University),
Bengaluru, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree of Bachelor
of Business Administration (Honors) is a record of original work carried out by Vedant
Singh Tosaria (Reg. No. 1823357) during the academic year 2020-21 under the guidance of
Dr Aarthy C, Assistant Professor, School of Business Studies and Management, CHRIST
(Deemed to be University), Bengaluru and it has not been previously formed the basis for
the award of any Degree, Diploma or any other similar title of recognition to any candidate of
this or any other University or Institution.

Place: Bengaluru Dr. Joby Thomas

(Head of Department)

School of Business Studies and

Management.
CHRIST (Deemed to be
University) BGR Campus,
Bengaluru
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I express my special thanks to Dr Aarthy C, Assistant Professor, School of Business Studies

and Management, Christ (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru, for taking the time to
guide and mentor me from the stage of selecting the topic till the submission of the research.
Her expert advice and constant motivation helped me to conduct the study in a systematic and
orderly manner.

I would also like to thank Dr. (Fr) Abraham Vettiyankal Mani, Vice-Chancellor, CHRIST
(Deemed to be University), Bengaluru, for having provided an opportunity to carry out
research as a part of my curriculum of Bachelor of Business Administration (Honors).

I would like to convey my gratitude to Mrs Jyothi Kumar (Dean, School of Business Studies
and Management, Christ (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru) and Dr Joby Thomas,
HOD, School of Business Studies and Management, Christ (Deemed to be University),
Bengaluru for providing me with the opportunity and the support to carry out such research in
the area of Marketing. This was instrumental in my journey of studying and understanding the
impact of Covid-19 in the FMCG sector with respect to consumer behaviour.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 1
1.1 CORONA VIRUS DISEASE (COVID-19) .................................................................. 1
1.2 SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME CORONAVIRUS (SARS-
COV-2) .................................................................................................................................. 1
1.3 POLICY MEASURES COMMENCED DURING COVID‐19 PANDEMIC .......... 2
1.4 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE CITIZENS OF INDIA ....................................... 4
1.5 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE INDIAN ECONOMY ......................................... 5
1.6 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON ENVIRONMENT ........................................................ 6
1.7 INTRODUCTION TO FAST MOVING CONSUMER GOODS INDUSTRY........ 7
1.8 PESTLE ANALYSIS FOR FMCG INDUSTRY ........................................................ 9
1.9 PORTER’S FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS FOR FMCG INDUSTRY ...................... 11
1.10 COMPANY PROFILE FOR FMCG INDUSTRY ................................................. 12
1.11 FMCG DURING THE PRE COVID WORLD ....................................................... 13
1.12 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON FMCG SECTOR & CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR15
1.13 RISE OF E-COMMERCE IN FMCG INDUSTRY ............................................... 18
1.14 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY .............................................................................. 19
1.15 SCOPE OF THE STUDY .......................................................................................... 20
1.16 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY ........................................................................... 20
2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE........................................................................................... 21
3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................... 27
3.1 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM ................................................................................... 27
3.2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................................... 27
3.3 RESEARCH DESIGN ................................................................................................. 28
3.4 SAMPLING DESIGN .................................................................................................. 29
3.4.1 SAMPLING TECHNIQUE...................................................................................... 29
3.4.2 SAMPLING SIZE ..................................................................................................... 29
3.4.3 TARGET POPULATION ........................................................................................ 30
3.5 DATA COLLECTION & TECHNIQUE USED ....................................................... 30
3.6 HYPOTHESIS.............................................................................................................. 31
3.7 PURPOSE OF RESEARCH ....................................................................................... 31
3.8. RESEARCH PROCESS ............................................................................................. 32
3.9 RESEARCH TOOLS................................................................................................... 33
4. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION .......................................................................... 34
4.1 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS .................................................................................... 34
4.2 CORRELATION ......................................................................................................... 44
4.3 ANOVA ......................................................................................................................... 46
4.4 CROSS TABULATION .............................................................................................. 47
4.5 PAIRED SAMPLE T-TEST ....................................................................................... 49
4.6 CHI-SQUARE TEST ................................................................................................... 51
4.7 RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY TEST FOR QUESTIONNAIRE....................... 52
5. FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS AND CONCLUSIONS ................................................... 53
5.1 INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................ 53
5.2 FINDINGS .................................................................................................................... 53
5.3 SUGGESTIONS ........................................................................................................... 57
5.4. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 58
5.5. SCOPE OF FUTURE RESEARCH .......................................................................... 59
ANNEXURE ........................................................................................................................... 60
BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................. 66

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 4. 1 Age of respondents .............................................................................................. 34

Figure 4. 2 Gender of respondents ....................................................................................... 35
Figure 4. 3 Educational qualification of respondents ......................................................... 36
Figure 4. 4 Occupation of respondents................................................................................. 37
Figure 4. 5 Annual income (Rupees) of respondents .......................................................... 38
Figure 4. 6 Residence of respondents ................................................................................... 39
Figure 4. 7 Panic buying situation in the country ............................................................... 40
Figure 4. 8 Purchase of health care products for a healthy lifestyle ................................. 41
Figure 4. 9 Purchase led by fear of product unavailability in the near future ................. 42
Figure 4. 10 Involvement in Hoarding of products for your own safeguard? .................. 43
 LIST OF TABLES

Table 4. 1 Age of respondents ............................................................................................... 34

Table 4. 2 Gender of respondents ......................................................................................... 35
Table 4. 3 Educational qualification of respondents ........................................................... 36
Table 4. 4 Occupation of the respondents ............................................................................ 37
Table 4. 5 Annual income (Rupees) of respondents ............................................................ 38
Table 4. 6 Residence of respondents ..................................................................................... 39
Table 4. 7 Panic buying situation in the country ................................................................. 40
Table 4. 8 Purchase of health care products for a healthy lifestyle ................................... 41
Table 4. 9 Purchase led by fear of product unavailability in the near future .................. 42
Table 4. 10 Involvement in Hoarding of products for your own safeguard? ................... 43
Table 4. 11 Correlation (1) .................................................................................................... 44
Table 4. 12 Correlation (2) .................................................................................................... 45
Table 4. 13 Model summary .................................................................................................. 46
Table 4. 14 ANOVA ............................................................................................................... 47
Table 4. 15 Gender and increase in the frequency of buying FMCG products online due
to the pandemic Crosstabulation .......................................................................................... 47
Table 4. 16 Gender and reasons for purchasing FMCG products online crosstabulation
.................................................................................................................................................. 48
Table 4. 17 Paired Samples Statistics ................................................................................... 49
Table 4. 18 Paired Samples Correlations ............................................................................. 49
Table 4. 19 Paired Samples Test ........................................................................................... 50
Table 4. 20 Chi-Square Test .................................................................................................. 51
Table 4. 21 Symmetric Measures .......................................................................................... 51
Table 4. 22 Case Processing Summary................................................................................. 52
Table 4. 23 Reliability Statistics ............................................................................................ 52
 CHAPTER- I

INTRODUCTION
1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 CORONA VIRUS DISEASE (COVID-19)

The coronavirus (COVID‐19) was first and foremost reported in the Wuhan district of the
People’s Republic of China on December 31 2019. The virus has spread in more than 210
countries and has affirmed the lives of more than twenty-nine lakh citizens across the globe.

The researchers, doctors, and virologists from all countries and departments are continuously
working day in out to understand the pattern of this disease, identification of various possible
ways of treatments, therapies, and also to majorly develop vaccines for its cure. The genetic
mutation of the virus has increased various challenges and difficulties over time for scientists
to come out with solid, effective results (CDC, 2020).

Further, even though there was the availability of advanced health care systems and technology,
there has been an evident escalation in the increase of cases, further leading to deaths. In the
current situation, the roles of paramedic staffs like doctors and nurses have become very risky
as they have a high probability of getting infected while treating the patients. The COVID‐19
has not only affected the daily life of people, but it has also resulted in the restriction of trade,
business, and economic activities.

The global pandemic has drawn enormous attention from the research community, virologists,
and medical practitioners to develop mechanisms for fighting the pandemic. The rapid
widespread of disease and the increase in the death rate of the citizens across the globe has
forced the government intervention in order to stop the human to human spread (CDC, 2020).

The Government came up with various strategies like imposing lockdown, which got the entire
population of India under restrictions and took strict action against the citizens contravening
the rules and regulations imposed. The Government ensured that all of its functionaries are
active to restrict the movement of people and other activities carried out during the lockdown.

1.2 SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME CORONAVIRUS (SARS-COV-2)

COVID19 is a respiratory infection caused by one of the world’s largest RNA (Ribonucleic
Acid) viruses. Coronaviruses can be mild or lethal in humans. Mild illnesses include common
colds, while more deadly illnesses, including extreme acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and
Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), occurred in 2003 and then 2012.

1
Coughing, sneezing, physical touch, and talking with near contact within 1–2 m are the most
common ways for the disease to spread. Intubation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
are two medical procedures that can cause respiratory secretions to become aerosolised and
spread through the air.

It can also spread when a person’s skin comes into contact with a contaminated surface and
then contacts their eyes, nose, or mouth. The virus has a survival period of up to 72 hours on
surfaces. Fever, headache, cough, myalgia, shortness of breath, dyspnoea, diarrhoea, and loss
of taste and smell are all typical symptoms of the disease (Lai, 2020) .

Doctors have described asymptotic cases as being more dangerous because people in these
cases are infected but show no symptoms. Pneumonia and Acute respiratory distress syndrome
(ARDS) are both possible complications. The disease is most infectious in the first three days
after symptoms appear, but it can spread before symptoms appear and in the tardy stages of
illness. From the time of exposure to the onset of symptoms, it can take anywhere from 2 to 14
days.

In the present scenario, there is no scientific proof of any COVID19 vaccine, and the main care
consists solely of symptomatic and supportive therapy. Handwashing often, coughing while
covering one’s mouth, keeping a physical distance from others, and self-isolation are all
prescribed preventive steps who suspect they are infected (Lai, 2020)

1.3 POLICY MEASURES COMMENCED DURING COVID‐19 PANDEMIC

Government authorities have undertaken various initiatives at various levels in response to the
global pandemic. The Government has strictly imposed curfews, stay at home orders and travel
restrictions, and business facilities closures to keep a check on the movement of people
throughout the country. The Government has inaugurated various centres for quarantine and
specialised hospitals for the adequate treatment of infected individuals. The Government has
also provided specially designed dress codes for the paramedic staffs like nurses, doctors and
other hospital employees who are involved continuously in the treatment of the infected
individuals (Ghosh, 2020) .

Laying focus especially on the individual states, the authorities have been engaged in the
sanitisation of locations that are either prone to infection or already infected. The Government
has either postponed or cancelled various religious, sports, cultural and political events through
which the transmission can be confined. The Government ordered the suspension of school and
colleges, operations of manufacturing and service sectors, places of worship, training and
2
research institutes, private and public Transportation where the chances of public gatherings
are high.

The essential services such as hospitals, banks, pharmacies, and grocery shops were kept
opened keeping into consideration the everyday requirements of the citizens of the country.
Leading ahead, Mr Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India, appealed to the citizens of the
country to use the “Arogya Setu App” to get an enhanced awareness of the disease and also
establish a connection to the essential healthcare services in the country. With the financial aids
from the World Bank, The Indian Government has discovered measures to keep the situation
under control.

The central Government has allocated Rs.28,379 crore to the states to help them deal with
COVID19 effectively. For displaced people, migrant labourers, and people stuck in various
states, the Government has opened shelter homes. The Government, with the support of
nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and self-help organisations, continues to provide food
to those living in shelter homes. It has also given groceries and cash to people with low
socioeconomic income level (Kumar A. , 2020).

The Government, in order to ensure the safeguard of the middle-class people, have appealed to
the landlords not to take rents, extended the income tax deadline, taken necessary steps to
ensure that agricultural outputs should reach people, requested companies and business entities
to refrain from salary cut and retrenchments and in order to stop panic buying or hoarding of
necessary items the Government ensured availability of all necessary items and grocery at the
stores. The Prime Minister, President, and Members of Parliament have gone for a 30% salary
cut for one year.

Furthermore, to ensure that their workforce does not have to bear the pressure, many senior
officials and management teams from big companies have undertaken cuts in their payment.
The Chief Ministers and the Prime Minister of our nation have requested the people to forward
contributions in the form of help CM Relief fund and PM care funds.

The total amount raised from donations would be used to feed and provide basic necessities to
citizens of lower socioeconomic status, migrant workers, and the underprivileged, as well as to
combat the pandemic that the world was facing and had a devastating effect on the economy
and the citizens of the country (Kumar A. , 2020).

3
1.4 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE CITIZENS OF INDIA
The COVID19 has a wide range of effects on people’s lives. On January 30, 2020, a corona
outbreak was recorded in Kerala’s Thrissur district. By April 2020, it had spread to almost all
of India’s nations, killing over 600 people. Lockdown was imposed by the Government, forcing
most people to remain at home.

The prolonged lockdown has caused resource depletion in the absence of resource generation.
During this time, people have experienced anxiety, depression, tension, a loss of confidence,
and a state of uncertainty as a result of this. There is a rise in domestic abuse against women
and children. Women are facing physical and sexual violence by their partners during the
lockdown (Debata, 2020).

During the lockdown time in India, the National Commission for Women (NCW) registered a
twofold increase in gender-based violence complaints across the region (Roy, 2020). Injuries
and severe physical, emotional, sexual, and reproductive health complications, such as sexually
transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancies, arise from violence toward women.

Women are mostly responsible for caring duties. The lockdown policies have exacerbated
gender disparities in caregiving, burdening women more than men with responsibilities such
as caring for the elderly, the children and sick family members. In addition to domestic
violence, after the outbreak of COVID19 and subsequent outbreaks, there has been a rise in
child pornography and child exploitation in India (Debata, 2020).

During the pandemic, people stayed indoors, but the number of physicians, nurses, ambulance
workers, police officers, and sweepers doubled. Their programmes went above and beyond the
job description and specifications in order to save people’s lives. Whereas health staff
remained inside hospitals, apart from their families, police officers remained outside to ensure
that external operations ran smoothly. During this time, the job work of cleaners, which had
previously been undervalued, has gained a lot of respect and appreciation.

In India, there have been reports of racial discrimination and xenophobic assaults (Karmarkar,
2020). After the outbreak of COVID19, people in the Northeast, mainly of mongoloid
appearance, have faced growing prejudice and discrimination. These people were forced to be
quarantined despite having no COVID19 symptoms, refused entrance into the apartment
complex, threatened with eviction and forced to leave the apartment, forced to leave a
restaurant and several other things (Debata, 2020).

4
1.5 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE INDIAN ECONOMY
As output and consumption are reduced due to the COVID19 pandemic, the global economy
will be thrown into chaos and a major economic slowdown. Developing countries like India
are not prepared and resistant to such external shocks, and economic growth is likely to slow.
As a result, the Indian economy has been sluggish since the introduction of demonetisation and
the goods and services tax (GST), and the Government was looking for ways to get it back on
track (Debata, 2020). The COVID19, on the other hand, has put an end to any expectations of
an economic recovery in the near future.

Tourism, hospitality, aviation, textiles, agriculture, construction, gems/jewellery, and startups,

all of which contribute significantly to the economy and job creation, have recorded losses in
billions of rupees during the pandemic (Seetharaman 2020). The tourism industry expects a
loss of 5 lakh crores in revenue and job losses of 4 crore people who are directly or indirectly
working in the industry.

The hospitality industry, especially hotel chains, is expected to lose Rs 30,000 crore, resulting
in the loss of 15 lakh jobs. Similarly, the aviation sector is expected to lose over Rs 8,200 crore
due to the cancellation of international and domestic flights. The textile industry, which is made
up of micro, small, and medium businesses that depend on human skills, is expected to lose
one crore jobs due to a lack of funds, capital, and a drop in demand for textiles, as well as
ongoing logistical issues caused by the lockdown as stated by the Business standard in their
published report (Kumar A. , 2020).

COVID19 has also had an impact on the agricultural sector. There is high demand for wheat,
vegetables, and other crops as a result of the global pandemic. However, due to supply chain
problems, agricultural outputs are unable to meet customers. As a result, farmers are forced to
lower their prices. Tea exports have dropped by 8% as a result of the inability to harvest the
crop.

The agricultural sector has been deeply impacted by the lack of migrant labour to carry out
processing operations and supply chain disturbances. In addition, the closure of hotels,
restaurants, sweet shops, and tea shops has impacted crop, pulse, vegetable, and milk sales.
Meanwhile, misinformation, especially on social media, has harmed poultry farmers by
implying that chickens are carriers of COVID19. In India, the construction industry employs
approximately 51 million workers. COVID19 shock has a huge effect on a very massive scale.

5
Migrant workers have fled their work sites due to fear of disease, the closing of ongoing
projects, loss of jobs, and lack of food.

The industrial units have been severely harmed as a result of the country’s lockdown and
suspension of public transportation services. Automakers, mobile manufacturers, consumer
electronics companies, and many others have ordered shutdowns, resulting in incalculable
harm to key product development leading to significant losses in revenue (Debata, 2020)

Due to a lack of jobs, funds, and the inability to communicate and commute with clients, the
COVID19 has forced start-up units to close. It is due to the COVID19 pandemic that the retail
sales of gems and jewellery in India are reported to have dropped by 80%.

The retail sector has been impacted by the decline of footfall in shopping malls and movie
theatres, which has impacted the consumption of both essential and luxury goods. Employees’
jobs are in jeopardy in the current situation, with all retailers shutting down their operations
due to the pandemic. During the pandemic, the fast-moving consumer durables (FMCG)
market, which provides grocery goods, milk, and hygiene products, saw a rise in demand for
the products. Unsuspecting workers across industries would bear the brunt of the lockdowns,
affecting lives, livelihoods, and, as a result, the entire economy

The pandemic has had a massive economic effect on India. The temporary halt in economic
activity, which resulted in a 34.6% drop in India’s exports and a 28.7% drop in imports as
countries closed their borders and also a significant drop in stock markets, and minimal work
in service sectors, has prompted the question of how the Indian economy will recover (Debata,
2020).

India’s growth has been downgraded by the World Bank and credit rating agencies for the fiscal
year 2021, with the lowest estimates in three decades since the country’s economic
liberalisation in 1991. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts 1.9% GDP growth for
India in the fiscal year 2021–22, which is the highest among G20 countries, as stated by the
Times of India in their article.

1.6 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON ENVIRONMENT

The lockdown has resulted in clear skies, decreased carbon emissions, and safer breathing air.
When factories, institutions, and economic activities come to a halt, there is an unavoidable
positive effect on the climate. In India, the lockdown has resulted in improved water and air

6
quality. India witnessed a significant decrease in the air pollution levels across cities like
Bengaluru, Delhi, Lucknow and Kolkata.

The Indian Environment Ministry’s Central Pollution Control Board announced a 71%
reduction in nitrogen dioxide levels (Shakil, 2020). Similarly, water bodies such as the Yamuna
and Ganga rivers have improved significantly since the lockout was implemented. As per the
report submitted by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Ganga’s water quality has
improved, with average water quality of 27 points, making it ideal for bathing and wildlife and
fisheries reproduction. In a nutshell, the COVID19 has aided in the restoration of the
environment.

On the other hand, the pandemic has resulted in an increase in biomedical and hazardous waste
production. Furthermore, the use of plastics has increased, while waste recycling has decreased,
potentially posing a future problem. Furthermore, the Government’s emphasis has shifted from
economic and environmental activities to its citizens. It is leading to which the funds have been
allocated to sectors such as hospitals and the provision of basic necessities to citizens.

1.7 INTRODUCTION TO FAST MOVING CONSUMER GOODS INDUSTRY

FMCG sector is India’s fourth-largest sector in India, 50% of which accounts for household
and personal care. Growing awareness of the consumer, more accessibility to a wide variety of
products, and changing lifestyle have acted as the main drivers for the growth of this sector.
During the last few years, rural India has grown at a much broader pace, taking account of the
Indian FMCG sector. The Indian FMCG sector produced US$52.75 billion in revenue in FY18
and is expected to hit US$103.7 billion in FY20, with an estimated growth of 9-10% in the
year 2020. FMCG sector witnessed an FDI inflow of US$ 16.28 Billion from April 2000 -
March 2020 (IBEF, 2019).

The various products of the FMCG sector which dominate today’s market are toiletries,
detergents, cosmetics, tooth cleaning products and various other products. The FMCG sector
in India also includes consumer electronics, pharmaceuticals, packaged food products,
chocolates and soft drinks. Different companies dominate the market in different sub-sectors
because the industry covers a wide range of goods. The leading FMCG companies in India are-
Dabur (60%), Colgate (54.7%), Hindustan Unilever (54%) (Almeida, 2021).

7
Some of the government initiatives and recent developments in the FMCG sector are as
follows:

➢ Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) unveiled a new brand in the nature category called
Nature Protect in November 2020, which includes over a half-dozen hygiene products.
The strategy was to launch plant-based products in the “backdrop of Covid-19”.
➢ On November 4, 2020, Amway India announced its plan to invest Rs.150 cr. To
enhance manufacturing automation of its production line and home delivery, alongside
also improving its digital capabilities.
➢ In October 2020, Nestle India announced its plan to infuse a sum of Rs.2600 cr. Into
their eight manufacturing units with the purpose of enhancing production capabilities
over the period of next four years.
➢ In March 2020, Hindustan Unilever Limited signed a deal with Glenmark
Pharmaceuticals Ltd. To acquire its personal hygiene brand VWash.
➢ PepsiCo India increased the investment in its new Greenfield snacks plant in Uttar
Pradesh from 500-815 cr. with a goal to generate approximately 1500 direct/indirect
jobs and enable a local souring ecosystem.
➢ The Government drafted a new Consumer Protection Bill with the aim of establishing
a comprehensive system to ensure that consumers receive justice in an easy, fast,
available, affordable, and timely manner.
➢ GST is beneficial for the FMCG sector as most of the FMCG products such as soaps,
toothpaste, oil, and hair oil come under the 18% tax bracket, not against the previous
frames of 23-24%, and GST on hygiene products have also been reduced to 0-5% and
12-18% (IBEF, 2019).
➢ GST will help transform the logistics in the FMCG sector into “modern and efficient
models” as all the major organisations are planning to remodel their operations into
more extensive warehousing and logistics.

Increasing consumer income and demand have increased consumption not just in the urban
sector but also in the rural sector. The Rural FMCG sector is expected to grow to US$ 220
billion by the year 2025 from US$ 23.6 billion in FY18. Online web portals are expected to
play a major role for companies that are trying to obtain a significant share in the market as it
will help the company aid cheaper and more convenient mode to increase a company’s reach.

8
Online FMCG consumption is estimated to reach 40% in terms of overall demand, with the
expected increase of US$ 30 billion from FY17 to FY 20. FMCG industry has found various
ways for “last-mile connectivity, improving, reliable credit management” through the
distribution channel. Digital adoption in this sector will deliver massive benefits in terms of
“lower supply chain costs, increase in customer base and higher revenue per consumer.”

1.8 PESTLE ANALYSIS FOR FMCG INDUSTRY

Pestle analysis is a tool for understanding the business environment and the opportunities and
threats that exist within it. It can take advantage of opportunities while mitigating risks by
recognising the world in which it operates. PESTEL analysis, in particular, is a valuable tool
for identifying risks associated with market growth or decline, as well as guiding business to
expand.

P- Political Factors

E- Economic Factors

S- Socio-Cultural Factors

T- Technological Factors

L- Legal Factors

E- Environmental Factors

PESTLE analysis for the FMCG industry is as follows: -

A. Political Factors: The following “political factors” affect the FMCG industry:
➢ Exemption of tax in sales and excise duty for small-scale industries.
➢ Restrictions in the import and export policies due to the pandemic
➢ Transportation and infrastructure development in rural areas to help in
improving the distribution channel of the companies
B. Economic Factors: The following “economic factors” affect the FMCG industry:
➢ The Inflation rate is increasing in India and across the world. The Government
and Reserve Bank of India are trying to control the inflation rate with different
economic packages and measures.
➢ India’s FMCG sector is the country’s fourth-largest sector. Every industry has
slowed as a result of the pandemic.

9
C. Social Factors: The following “social factors” affect the FMCG industry:
➢ Rapid urbanisation, increased literacy rate, and rising per capita income has led
to rapid growth in the FMCG industry.
➢ Due to change in the lifestyle pattern in recent years, the consumption pattern
has also changed, which includes spending more on discretionary products
rather than the necessary products. This is a good sign for the companies.
➢ During the pandemic, people’s main focus was on purchasing food items for
stocking up as the conditions were uncertain, and there was a sense of fear
among the citizens.
➢ In recent years, the rural sector in the FMCG has shown tremendous growth,
with increasing demand and more usage of the products which were earlier
demand only in the rural areas.
D. Technological factors: The following “technological factors” affect the FMCG
industry:
➢ Technological factors play a very crucial role in terms of the supply chain,
customer services, etc (Yadav, 2014).
➢ There have been several new technologies like Artificial Intelligence and
competitive intelligence that are changing the landscape in the FMCG sector.
➢ Many of the Indian firms are joining hands with the foreign players for
simplified technologies.
➢ The companies have laid down major focus on technological advancements
during the pandemic
E. Legal Factors: The following “legal factors” affect the FMCG industry:
➢ Employment law provides an equal amount of opportunities to every citizen to
work and earn their livelihood in the FMCG Sector.
➢ Right to Consumer protection is fundamental as the customer must have the
rights to file a complaint or a lawsuit against the seller of the services in case of
any malpractice or other product/service-related issues.
➢ Industry-specific regulations are essential and must be followed by every
company to avoid the collision.
F. Environmental Factors: The following “environmental factors” affect the FMCG
industry:
➢ The companies are strengthening environmental considerations in the form of green
products and packaging to respect the environmental concerns arising, especially due
10
 to the pandemic, as there is increased use of plastic and less recycle management
system.
➢ The companies in the sector also are reducing the environmental impact of sore
construction and operations.
➢ Global warming is a major issue and is becoming a severe factor for firms to consider.
Many remedial measures have been taken by the Government to reduce global
warming.
➢ Increased demand in Hygiene and health care products due to the pandemic.

1.9 PORTER’S FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS FOR FMCG INDUSTRY

The Porter’s Five forces analysis for FMCG Industry are as follows:
Threat of Substitutes

Switching from one product to another is not difficult for customers due to the high presence
of several brands in the market. Consumers are attracted to products by strategic choices such
as price point and quality. It’s relatively straightforward for a customer to switch between
brands due to narrow product distinction under many brands. Switching prices, both immediate
and long-term, as well as a buyer’s willingness to adapt, notify the danger of substitutes
(Satyanarayan, 2018).

Competitive rivalry

Many companies are diversifying into new geographies and product categories, and the modern
retail market is estimated to be worth $180 billion by 2021. As more firms enter the market,
the FMCG industry has become increasingly fragmented. Before the pandemic, Patanjali will
invest US$743.72 million in various food parks across the world if Wipro diversifies and
expands its product range in energy drinks, detergents, and fabric conditioners.

In the wake of the pandemic, health care products like masks, sanitisers and gloves were in
excess demand. This led to many big players in the market investing in these products, which
increased competitive rivalry among all the firms (Somvanshi, 2020).

Bargaining power of buyers

Though the income level and an increasing youth population have been important growth
drivers for the industry, brand awareness has also helped demand. Customers would be enticed
to turn to other products when switching costs are minimal, resulting in increased demand for
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new products. The sector would also benefit from the availability of similar or identical
alternatives, as well as the strong impact of marketing strategies on the customers.

The threat of new entrants

Any new competition in the market presents a challenge to the industry’s existing players. The
market is projected to be crowded, with investment approvals of up to 100% foreign equity in
single-brand retail and 51% in multi-brand retail. In addition, businesses will be forced to invest
more money in advertising, which will only hurt their bottom line in the longer period.

Bargaining power of Suppliers

Via local procurement from a fragmented community of main product suppliers, large FMCG
companies are often in a position to set prices. By raising costs, lowering quality, or reducing
product availability, suppliers may put pressure on businesses and even consumers. Buyers are
primarily affected by such decisions.

1.10 COMPANY PROFILE FOR FMCG INDUSTRY

The companies under the FMCG industry are as follows:

➢ Hindustan Unilever Limited: HUL is one of India’s oldest FMCG Company with a
market capitalisation of RS.521,882 cr. It is a “Unilever subsidiary, a British-Dutch
company.” The business was established in 1933 and is headquartered in Mumbai.
HUL has been serving “over 2 billion customers for more than 87 decades”. They have
over 35 different brands varying across 20 categories, such as detergents, skincare,
cosmetics, tea, etc. Some of the brands include Surf, Excel, Clinic Plus, etc.
➢ ITC Limited: ITC Ltd. has been in the Indian market, flourishing, for over 100 years,
with a market capitalisation of Rs.240,076 cr. which gives them a better understanding
of the Indian market and Indian consumers. ITC is well known for its guaranteed
standards in production and packaging. They have a broad distribution channel in India
which allowed them to penetrate even the most rural retail stores (Nagar, 2021). Their
products include Savlon hand wash & soaps, Papercraft, Classmate. ITC sells 82% of
the tobacco in Asia, including brands like Gold Flake Kings, Gold Flake Premium Star,
etc.
➢ Nestle India: Nestle is a global food and beverage company headquartered in
Switzerland. Globally, the company has been around in the market for a span of over

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 150 years. In 1912, Nestle began its operations as Nestle Angle-Swiss Condensed Milk
Company catering to the nutritional and wellness requirement of Indian consumers.
Currently, the market cap. Of the company is around Rs.159,330 cr. In 2016, the
company was rated 33 in Forbes list of largest public companies. Nestle serves a wide
range of products, including beverages, bottled water, milkshakes, etc. some of the
brands include Maggie, Milky Bar, Kit Kat, etc.
➢ Britannia Industries: Britannia Industries is one of the country’s largest food
manufacturing firms, with a current market capitalisation of Rs.93,866 cr. Established
in “the year 1892 in Kolkata with an initial investment of Rs.295. More than 5 million
retail outlets are selling the products by Britannia” (Almeida, 2021). More than 50% of
Indian households are users of their range of food items. In India and 60 other nations,
they have a large distribution network.
➢ Marico: Marico, a Mumbai-based company, was founded in 1990. It started as a brand
for “coconut and refined oil” but has since grown to include a variety of consumer
products. The company now carries out operations in 25 countries across Asia and
Africa’s emerging markets. They uphold their marketing and packaging creativity, as
well as the tagline “Make a Difference.” Brands such as Parachute, Hair code, and
others are used in Marico households.
➢ Dabur: Dabur India Ltd. (Dabur) is one of the leading FMCG companies in India with
revenue of over Rs 7,680 crore and a market capitalisation of over Rs 48,800 Crore.
Dabur is the world’s largest Ayurvedic and Natural Health Care Company with a
portfolio of over 250 Herbal and Ayurvedic products. Dabur also recommends various
Ayurvedic Home Remedies formulated using ayurvedic plants and herbs which are
natural and chemical-free (Seth, 2017). Dabur has two divisions in India: the consumer
care division and foods division apart from its international operations

1.11 FMCG DURING THE PRE COVID WORLD

During the years preceding the pandemic, India’s FMCG industry was competitive and
undergoing drastic changes. Since mid-2018, the sector has been slowing, with growth rates
gradually declining for the past 15-18 months, from the mid-teens to about half that by
January/February 2020. In this case, FMCG companies attempted to compete by lowering
prices and increasing consumer offerings in the hopes of gaining market share (Sar, 2018). This
is particularly true in India’s urban cities.

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The tale of rural India, on the other hand, cannot be overlooked. Rural India’s FMCG sector
has recently expanded at a faster rate than its urban counterpart, with products accounting for
roughly half of the total rural expenditure. More than 40% of the overall revenues of the FMCG
sector in India comes from Semi-urban and rural segments, and with about 12% of the world’s
population living in the villages of India, the Indian rural FMCG market is set to be a driving
force for the industry at large.

To expand their rural scope, FMCG companies are considering the introduction of smaller
packages for products that will likely correspond to rural India’s lower incomes. This is a
magnificent example of how the FMCG companies are constantly devising new tactics to
ensure their success. Because of skewed purchasing power and unorganised pricing capabilities
by the kiranas, modern trade and organised retail had resulted in a very pernicious outcome for
the neighbourhood Kirana shops (IBEF, 2019). That saw a change because of the initiatives
undertaken to digitalise Kirana shops, allowing them to compete with larger retail competitors.

Advantages in India:
The advantages to the various companies in the FMCG sector are as follows:

Growing Demand

➢ The sector’s primary growth drivers have been rising incomes and an increasing youth
population. Demand has also been aided by brand awareness.
➢ By 2020, India’s contribution to global consumption is estimated to have more than
doubled to 5.8%.
➢ Rural India sees a rise in demand for high-quality products and services, thanks to
FMCG companies revamped and upgraded distribution networks.

Attractive Opportunities

➢ The rural market has a low penetration rate, which means there is space for expansion.
➢ The direct cash transfer scheme has raised rural India’s disposable income.
➢ Another area that is expanding is the exports of products from India to other nations
across the globe.
➢ By 2030, the e-commerce segment is expected to account for 11% of total FMCG
revenue.

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Higher Investments

➢ The RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group will invest a US$ 14.74 million capital fund in the new
FMCG ventures.
➢ Roots Ventures has invested in Supa Star Foods Pvt Ltd, a packaged food and beverage
firm, for the second time to help the company expand its distribution network and
introduce new products in the market.
➢ Dabur intends to invest Rs 250-300 crore (US$ 38.79-46.55 million) in capacity
expansion, as well as make major acquisitions for their advantage in the domestic
market.

Policy Support

➢ The approval of international equity investments of up to 100% in single-brand retail

and 51% in multi-brand retail.
➢ In India, initiatives such as the Food Security Bill and direct cash transfer subsidies
cover around 40% of households.
➢ Global FMCG companies investing in India must have a minimum capitalisation of
$100 million.

1.12 IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON FMCG SECTOR & CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

COVID has modified the structure of the consumption basket, and some of these changes will
be more lasting than others. A greater emphasis on Hygiene and wellbeing would become the
practice. Demand for discretionary items is expected to pick up gradually but not immediately.
There is an increase in demand for products that improve personal Hygiene in and around
homes and workplaces for the average customer (Sharma, 2020).

Products such as handwashes, sanitisers, soaps, wipes, masks, disinfectants, home cleaning
products such as kitchen cleaners, floor cleaners and toilet cleaners have seen an increase in
demand, which is forecasted to continue in the future as cleanliness and Hygiene become the
latest mantras. FMCG businesses that cater to these needs are likely to prosper. There are no
changes in the price of the products.

Companies that specialise in food staples and fast foods, such as instant noodles, biscuits,
frozen foods, rice, cooking oils, instant mixes, and nutrition, will also be in high demand.
Consumers are also interested in products that aid in the development of immunity to illnesses.

15
Consumers would make every effort to reduce their visits to the supermarket. Leading to this,
the average amount spent per trip by a person is likely to rise as they try to avoid making
repeated trips to the supermarket. Online shopping will become the new norm. Key players’
initiatives such as “no-contact delivery” are expected to intensify this trend in online shopping.
This allows customers the comfort and convenience of shopping from their own homes (Garg,
2020).

Increase in Rural Demand- Immediate to a short-term increase in rural demand is a big

development that will be seen throughout the industry. This is largely due to the return of the
migrant labour population to their villages. Mostly the labourers belong to the low-income
group as they are daily labourers. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Act is
expected to create jobs for rural Indian households. As a result, demand for products in rural
areas rises, particularly until migrants return to the cities to work.

Panic Buying- Panic buying is described as consumer behaviour in which they purchase
unusually large quantities or a diverse range of products in advance of or during a disaster or
perceived disaster, or else if a consumer anticipates a huge price surge or upstream shortage of
products. Panic purchasing often results in massive amounts of essentials and medical supplies
being bought from retailers, drastically restricting or sometimes removing supply, preventing
people and disadvantaged groups, such as the elderly or disabled, from obtaining them as they
would usually (Loxton, 2020).

When consumers believe the risk of contracting a disease is high, they are driven to engage in
self-protective behaviours, such as panic buying, in order to reduce their perceived risk.
Furthermore, panic purchasing can be promoted when consumers anticipate a product being
unavailable and thereby limiting the individual freedoms by not possessing it, or instead, when
consumers anticipate a sense of guilt if they do not engage in a certain behaviour or purchase,
prompting them to make these planned purchases sooner rather than later.

Herd Mentality- Herd mentality is characterised as an alignment of thoughts and/or

behaviours among individuals in a community that emerges from local interactions among
agents rather than from purposeful planning by a central authority or leading figure. Herd
mentality manifests itself in many customer purchasing behaviours and collective societal
anxiety during times of stress or shock, such as during the COVID-19 timeframe. The main
issue posed by herd mentality is that customers hurry to make specific purchases when supply
cannot be increased rapidly or adequately (Loxton, 2020).

16
People prefer to follow the crowd rather than take a more rational, individualised strategy in
situations where information is limited, and a perceived immediate danger exists. This pattern
perpetuates mutual social anxieties in the sense of buying behaviour during a crisis, where
consumers are highly likely to pay attention to their peers’ purchasing behaviours than what is
suggested by governing or scientific institutions. According to scientific neuroeconomic
consensus, the present pandemic’s unpredictable circumstances intensify customer anxiety and
panic, making them vulnerable to herd mentality behaviours.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs- In applying Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, We investigate the

level of satisfaction or utility associated with specific wants and needs, as well as how
consumers are driven to prioritise spending. Maslow’s principle may be applied here to
categorise purchases as “needs” and “wants (Loxton, 2020).”

Consumers change their behaviour to focus on “panic buying” of non-durable items that assist
in survival during periods of distress or anxiety, including food, water, and medicine are the
major examples. The hoarding of such non-durable products reflects the perception of future
events being unpredictable, as well as the fear of being unable to obtain essential consumer
goods in the future. This shows how customers are driven to meet Maslow’s lower-order needs
despite the possibility of negative economic or health consequences. In an atmosphere of
market panic due to the pandemic, consumers forego their motivation for higher-order
satisfaction, putting their basic needs first.

Therefore, during the current crisis, consumers will continue to satisfy lower-order needs until
they are confident the threat of coronavirus has subsided (Loxton, 2020). Hence, to date,
COVID-19 consumer behaviours appear to be following the example of historic shocks and
crises with consumers re-defining priorities for spending according to disposable income and
needs.

High demand for Immunity Boosters & Ayurvedic Products- As the coronavirus pandemic
brought the need for preventive healthcare to the forefront, FMCG companies shifted their
attention to meet increased demand for ayurvedic products and immunity boosters.

“Preventive healthcare and Hygiene based on Ayurveda, both personal and household, are
gaining popularity among consumers. People are becoming more interested in prophylactic
health remedies, especially those that improve immunity. This pattern is likely to continue in
the future.” Dabur India CEO Mohit Malhotra stated in one of his articles (Seth, 2017).

17
“This pandemic has helped to build trust in Ayurveda and Yoga among the segment that does
not believe in it, echoing similar sentiments. People now believe in Ayurveda and the
conventional method, so this is an opportunity for us.” Patanjali Ayurved MD Acharya
Balkrishna stated (NEWSWIRE, 2020).

Consumers are becoming more health-conscious as a result of the outbreak and are gradually
searching for healthier alternatives in food and beverages to improve immunity and reduce
their risk of contracting the virus. After the outbreak of the pandemic, demand for immunity
boosting foods and beverages has increased due to their high nutritional and health and
wellness appeal. Natural food and plant-based nutrition product manufacturers are investing in
new product creation to meet the growing demand for immunity-boosting products among
consumers.

Vitamin C and Vitamin D-rich foods are becoming increasingly popular among consumers, as
they help to boost immunity. Vitamin C is administered intravenously to people who have been
infected with COVID-19 (intravenous therapy). Furthermore, customers are substituting
functional beverages for high-sugar drinks and carbonated beverages, as it has become a ‘health
trend’ in 2020 and is seen as a preventative measure to mitigate the virus’s effects
(NEWSWIRE, 2020).

1.13 RISE OF E-COMMERCE IN FMCG INDUSTRY

E-commerce, also known as internet commerce or electronic commerce, refers to the purchase
and sale of goods and services through an internet platform and the transfer of money through
an online platform and data to execute these transactions. Ecommerce surge sales of FMCG
goods in India during pandemic lockdown as consumers are scared to go out from their home
because of the fear virus (ThuyTran, 2021). Even 2-3 weeks earlier, before the lockdown, there
was a huge demand for FMCG goods, sanitisers, etc.

According to the FMCG companies, there was a sudden jump in demand around 15-45%
according to the category. Products such as rice, atta, pulses, edible oil, sugar, biscuit, tea,
instant noodle, frozen food, soaps, hand washes, and floor cleaners are flying off the shelves
from almost every state of India. Even small, medium Kirana shops are going towards online
selling due to huge demand, and they are doing it by creating their own website or joining a
different platform like Amazon, Flipkart, Grofers and other e-commerce industry to increase
the sales and fulfill the demand of the customers

18
E-Grocers like Big basket, Grofers, Amazon says that their sales are up by 100%, and there is
more jump in the sales of staples, biscuits, frozen soaps and handwashes. FMCG industry
trying to speed up the supplies of the goods so that there should be no shortage of goods.
Shortage of delivery persons because of the huge online demand for FMCG goods (ThuyTran,
2021). Online Grocers like Big basket, Grofers, Natures Basket were going out of delivery
guys due to the surge in demand.

People are getting used to the E-Grocers platform in the time of pandemic lockdown. Everyone
is trying to buy essential goods online. Even new customers are coming on this platform to buy
their goods online. So, those customers who haven’t tried these platforms before are giving it
a call and ordering their essential goods online.

JIO has also stepped into this industry during the pandemic lockdown and start its services on
27.4.2020 to take it as the opportunity and get the permanent base customers. Reliance saw the
huge demand in this pandemic lockdown of FMCG goods, and after this, consumer Buying
behaviour towards e-commerce is totally going to be different due to this Covid-19 pandemic
lockdown (Hobbs, 2020). So, every Kirana which is offline they have to go digital by creating
their online website or joining hands with the existing e-commerce industry

Digitising Kirana is one of the biggest trends in the FMCG Industry under the Digital India
initiative. For the FMCG sector, this proposal has far-reaching implications. India’s rapidly
increasing smartphone penetration, combined with one of the lowest data rates in the world,
has aided in the country’s digitalisation. The face of consumer behaviour in India has changed
as a result of this.

The e-commerce market is booming, with the majority of the population projected to be online.
Though Covid-19 has accelerated India’s adoption of digital purchasing methods for FMCG
goods, the trend has been upward for some time, with e-commerce projected to account for
about 11% of FMCG sales by 2030 (nstore, 2020). As a result, India stands to gain a lot from
the internet’s influence.

1.14 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The various objectives that the research will fulfil are:

1) To analyse the impact of the global pandemic on the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods
(FMCG) Industry in India.

19
 2) To analyse the shift in the Consumer Buying Behaviour for the FMCG sector, before
and after the country’s lockdown.
3) To analyse the impact on consumer behaviour and satisfaction of the e-commerce
(FMCG) industry during the pandemic lockdown.

1.15 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The global pandemic affected almost every country on the globe, and its impact was witnessed
by the decline in the revenue of various sectors. There had been a tremendous movement or
shift that took place in the Consumer Behaviour with regards to the products in the FMCG
Sector during the onset of the global pandemic, that is, the Covid-19. The study was done to
determine how the pandemic affected the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Industry in
our country. This study’s geographic coverage is restricted to the citizens, market and
enterprises belonging to India.

1.16 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The various limitations of the study are as follows:

1) India is a country with 1.3 Billion citizens, but this research is conducted with around
200 respondents. Hence, the sample size is a limitation for this research.
2) The lack of previous studies on this particular topic is a limitation for the research as
there is a shortage of literature.
3) The majority of respondents belong to the urban areas.

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 CHAPTER-II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE
2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Jelen koncar et al. (2020) states that the basic measures taken by World Health Organisation
(WHO) to tackle Covid-19 are lockdown which promotes physical distancing and reduction in
human contact. This pandemic creates a problem for the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods as
there are many hands being exchanged right from production to retail which includes physical
distribution of the product and also wholesale. The best possible way to tackle the disruption
of the FMCG distribution is the complete digitalisation of the process, which includes all the
business activities. Digitalisation will help the industry to face the setbacks because of the
pandemic and also set itself right for the future.

Dilmini Rathnayaka (2020) says that the Covid-19 Pandemic has affected human life in
various ways across the globe. Travel, Transportation, human movements and social gatherings
have been completely minimised to ensure the safety of all individuals. She emphasises the
point that all businesses and entrepreneurs need modified and advanced to carry out business
transactions during the period. Dilmini suggests that FMCG companies should use an app that
certifies the customers on the arrival of the new stock. The information regarding the courier
and the delivery boy should be given to the customer well in advance to ensure security and to
also develop the trust of the customer in the brand.

Gaurav Shetty et al. (2020) analyse the Fast Moving Consumer Goods and Retail Industries
of tomorrow and also examine the various emerging trends in these markets. They state in their
work that the already existing layers between the producer and consumer are being eliminated,
i.e., wholesalers, distributors etc. Companies are making technological advancements to
strengthen their distribution network, which connects them directly to their customers and also
establishes a direct connection.

Vikas Kumar Singh et al. (2020) says that there have been various changes or shifts that took
place during the pandemic which were not into much focus before or did not exist before.
Things like prices being stable, local production receiving more importance and also increase
in cashless transactions to promote a lesser exchange of currency using human hands. He has
also explained the importance of Direct To Customer (DTC) in the Fast Moving Consumer
Goods sector.

21
Aishwarya Sharma (2020) states that during the pandemic, the Indian customers have become
more health-conscious and family-oriented, which means it becomes very important for the
companies to establish their brand association with safety and wellness to increase goodwill in
the market. She also highlights that brands are looking for a new digitalised way to catch the
attention of their customers. There is a major shift towards digital marketing by the brands as
there was an increase in screen time for almost all the individuals during the pandemic.

Ashwin Chouhan et al. (2020) states that the FMCG sector went through losses in FY 2020.
There was panic buying of essential and hygienic products like soaps, sanitisers etc. The main
challenge for the companies in this sector was distribution via the supply chain and the lack of
availability of labour during the lockdown.

Anmoal Gur (2020) describes pandemic as an obstacle that is circling the world today. He
says that the Covid-19 has made changes to a very large portion of our lives. This revolution
opens a pool of opportunities. The companies and individuals who turn these opportunities to
their advantage are likely to succeed over others. There was also a heavy impact on the
purchase decision of the individuals.

Tapesh Sarsodia et al. (2020) states that business and global commerce would never go back
to be as they were before the pandemic. Various trends like direct to consumer model (D2C),
Omnichannel fulfilment, etc., would emerge in the industries of tomorrow. He also highlights
the point that Macroeconomic dynamics, consumer behaviour and disruptions from the
supplyside form a complex network that drives these trends in the Indian economy.

Suraj Prakash et al. (2020) explains the changes in buying behaviour of Indian households
with reference to the FMCG sector in India during the pandemic. He states that it very
important for all businesses and brands to understand the change and shift in a purchase
decision of the customer to prepare themselves for the future. He also explains that brands
should take immediate action as this is a situation no company or brand was ever prepared for.

Manu Sharma et al. (2020) states that the Covid-19 Pandemic has lead to the development of
restrictive working space, which includes remote working, adaptable hours for the organisation
and employees from all across the globe. He says transforming into a platform economy is
beneficial as it increases employment and job opportunities as well. He explains that the
companies are now looking forward to developing a framework that enhances the survivability
of Sustainable Supply Chains (SSC) in the sector in India.

22
Byomakesh Debata (2020) highlights that the pandemic has aggravated a sense of fear and
instability among individuals due to probable misfortunate job and pay loss. Also, the
lockdown imposed by the Central Government has shown a massive increase in domestic
violence against the ladies and also a significant rise in cases of child abuse. The author also
mentions the fact that this lockdown gave time to nature to replenish itself due to lesser
pollution and reduced emissions into the water bodies via the factories.

Aman Jha (2020) explains how the FMCG sector, which has been paused due to the pandemic,
can be resumed with full functionality in India. He states that companies, along with their
strategies and policies of the Indian Government, will make the rural market demand more to
expand sales for revenue generation. There is also enormous growth in the e-commerce
business, and almost all the FMCG companies have introduced new products like hand
sanitisers, gloves and masks to prevent the spreading of the virus. The companies will also be
keen on controlling their production cost as it would help them enhance their revenue
generation.

Jorieke Manders et al. (2020) explains the flexibility in the FMCG food supply chain. They
collected data that covered eight organisations in a supply chain which includes suppliers, main
manufacturer, logistics provider and retailer. After analysing the collected data, it was
explained that every member in the supply chain applies flexibility to meet or fulfil the direct
needs of the immediate next member in the chain. The various organisations at different levels
in the supply chain set priorities on the flexibilities as per their convenience. Hence, there is no
possibility of overall flexibility in the supply chain.

S Sundararajan (2020) states that the country has not just been suffering economically but
also physically. The startups in the country were affected badly due to lockdown and lack of
customers and access. He also explains that there is an absence of foreign transactions. The
Indian Economic Analyst state that the country could be negatively impacted by half a per cent
in FY 2021. Sundararajan also says that the country’s GDP would take a dip of 0.3 to 0.5% in
the year 2021.

Arun Kumar (2021) states that covid-19 will have phases like the first and second wave, which
means that the virus will persist. He states that the global economy starts at the depression
phase. He compares the pandemic to a war situation and says that this is worse than war because
here, in this case, the demand has collapsed. There will be an immense impact on the
employment situation and stability in the country. The Government has introduced various

23
policies to counter the effects on the economy, and also, the country’s budget will have to be
restructured with a primary focus on using resources to control damage and focus mainly
impacted section of the society.

Saeid Vafainia (2020) says that the economic recession caused by the pandemic has
remarkably impacted the habits of the consumer and the media habits. She also explains how
the firms should bring about changes to their marketing strategies in order to respond to the
arising macroeconomic contractions. Advertising is important to put across the brand’s voice
during the pandemic. Also, Temporary Price Reduction (TPR) acts as an effective way to retain
significant market share.

Soumitra Pathare et al. (2021) cover the topic of how the Government of India has forcefully
ensured the absence of alcohol during the lockdown. She also states that people with alcoholism
were going into withdrawals, black marketing of alcohol and even suicide in several cases
because of the frustration which was built in day to day after not having access to alcohol. The
health dilemmas around the situation are both biological and psychosocial. The main
discussion is based on the fact that does the central Government has the right to forcefully
ensure alcohol absence on the grounds of health issue or is it considered as the violation of the
legal rights of the individual who wish to consume alcohol.

Hsin-Hsuan Meg Lee (2020) explains that Influencer marketing means brands collaborate
with different opinion leaders to connect with the audience and deliver their message clearly.
Such collaborations are likely to be under threat during the pandemic. The FMCG companies
should use influencer marketing during the pandemic to deliver their messages and also
promote the sale of their products by using influencers to show how the companies ensure
safety and Hygiene. Two main success factors which need to be looked after are relevance and
authenticity.

Lobel Trong Thuy Tran (2020) highlights the effectiveness of e-commerce platforms in the
pandemic. The study provides a systematic framework to understand the effect of the perceived
effectiveness of e-commerce platforms (PEEP) on consumer’s perceived economic benefits in
predicting sustainable consumption. The study also highlights how economic benefit arbitrates
the PEEP and sustainable consumption relationship, which is dependable on the levels of
pandemic fear.

24
Shagun Jaiswal (2020) states that the supply chain came across different experience in the
wake of the pandemic. There was a remarkable increase in demand for FMCG products where
people were buying goods in excessively huge amounts to survive the lockdown period, which
leads to hoarding. This created difficulties for the companies in meeting the demands of all the
customers as it was difficult to instantly supply 10x times more product at the same time using
the same supply mechanism as before. People then, during the lockdown, feared online
shopping as they believed the courier delivery boy could also be a virus carrier.

Dmitry Ivanov (2020) study looks into two major contributions in relation to two research
questions. Firstly, the study highlights disruption propagation in supply chains and identify an
orderly taxonomy. Secondly, the study reveals and systemise’s various insights from the theory
used for operating during a pandemic and during times of being back on track, along with
becoming more prepared for future pandemics. The outcomes show that orderly contributions
and managerial insights can be classified into three levels, which are network, process, and
control. Dmitri also reveals that adaptation capabilities play the most crucial role in managing
the supply chains under the disruptions created by the pandemic. The findings explain how the
existing OR methods can be helpful in coping with the ripple effect at five pandemic stages
(i.e., Anticipation; Early Detection; Containment; Control and Mitigation; and Elimination)
following the complete WHO classification.

Jill E. Hobbs (2020) states the implications of the pandemic for food supply chains and supply
chain flexibility. The effects of demand‐side on food supply chains have been bought into focus
which includes consumer panic buying with respect to essential products in order to survive
the uncertain pandemic and the unpredictable change in consumption patterns away from the
foodservice sector to meals cooked and consumed at home. Potential supply‐side disruptions
to food supply chains are assessed, including shortage of labour and disruptions in the
transportation networks within the country.

Lloyd Harris et al. (2020) explains some initial examination on how the pandemic influences
the developments of CSR and marketing in India. Lloyd states that the Covid-19 pandemic
provides a good opportunity for businesses to adapt more genuine and authentic CSR and
contribute to addressing urgent social and environmental challenges. The author also mentions
some potential directions of how consumer ethical decision making will be shifted due to the
pandemic. Affected by this pandemic and how they think this will change, not only the context
of marketing but how organisations approach their strategic marketing efforts.

25
Ashok Kumar Sar (2020) explains the influence of corporate governance and sustainability
performance. The author also highlights the relationship between the structure of the board,
disclosure, related transactions, rights of the shareholders and board procedure and
sustainability performance-economic performance, environmental performance and social
equity performance, for the companies in the Indian FMCG Industry. The author mentions in
detail an analysis of corporate governance in the companies based on already confirmed theory
and the sustainability structure. Ashok concludes by mentioning that companies with a high
corporate governance index are associated with superior sustainability performance.

Bijuna Mohan et al. (2020) mentions the important antecedents of brand equity for fastmoving
consumer goods (FMCG) in India. The study indicates that consumer-based brand equity for
FMCG comprises of four dimensions which are as follows, Brand association, Brand loyalty,
perceived quality and brand awareness. Brand association is the most important source of brand
equity, whereas the least effect was made by brand awareness. The Findings in the study
provide implications for brand managers to manage the brand equity of the Indian FMCG
brands.

26
 CHAPTER - III

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

COVID-19 has made an impact on the life of all individuals on many levels. When the world
resumes after COVID-19, businesses and global trade will never be the same. Supply chain
breakdowns, stockpiling, and stockouts are affecting FMCG industries that sell necessitydriven
and necessary goods like fresh produce, packaged food, and bottled water. The COVID19
pandemic has caused a big change in our understanding of what constitutes an essential;
hygiene items have been added to this category, whereas industries such as apparel have been
shifted to discretionary. Companies that are diligent in identifying these patterns would be the
winner in this case.

At the onset of the pandemic, there was a panic buying situation across the country, which
created difficulties for the FMCG companies to supply products as there was a sudden surge in
demands. There was the hoarding of products mainly due to fear of unavailability of products
in the near future and for own safeguard. The study also highlights the inclusion of a healthy
lifestyle in the population of India during the pandemic.

The FMCG Industry before the pandemic was functioning in a manner that is very different
from the manner in which it function’s today, considering the focus on offline and online retail.
The industry witnessed a drastic change in how people prioritise the products pre and post
covid. During the lockdown, there was a shift in consumer behaviour towards e-commerce
(FMCG) products, Direct To Customer (DTC). During the pandemic lockdown, the study
demonstrates how quickly consumers are migrating to e-commerce and how offline retailers
are shifting to online sales of vital (FMCG) products.

Therefore, the study aims to find and analyse the change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG
Industry- Pre & During Covid

3.2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Methodology of research essentially refers to the functional “how” of any given piece of
research. More precisely, it’s about how a study is systematically planned by a researcher to
ensure accurate and reliable findings that address the goals and objectives of the research. We
can find a research methodology chapter (or section) that covers the aspects listed above in a

27
dissertation, thesis, academic journal article (or almost any formal piece of research). An
excellent methodology chapter in a dissertation or thesis not only outlines the research
approaches made but also discusses why they were made.

In other words, the design choices should be justified by the methodology chapter by
demonstrating that the methods and techniques chosen are the best fit for the research goals
and objectives and will provide accurate and reliable results. A suitable methodology for
analysis offers scientifically sound effects, while a flawed methodology does not. Below, we
will look at the critical design options.

There are different types of research methodologies such as:

1. Qualitative Research: Qualitative research refers to a study that focuses on the

compilation and analysis of words (written or spoken) and textual knowledge.
Qualitative research can also be conducted on “softer” data points, including body
language or visual elements. Qualitative research is mainly used when the objectives of
the study are exploratory.
2. Quantitative Research: Quantitative study focused on numerical data evaluation and
testing. Typically, a quantitative approach is used when the research goals and
objectives are of an affirmative nature. A quantitative approach may be used, for
example, to calculate the relationship between two variables (e.g., type of personality
and probability of committing a crime) or to evaluate a series of hypotheses.

This particular study is descriptive research that aims to acquire ideas and explain the change
in consumer behaviour for the FMCG market- pre & during covid. The Questionnaire is made
up of multiple questions written on a page in a definite order. The Questionnaire provides the
respondents in the room designed for the intent of the Questionnaire to interpret, understand,
and write down. Both respondents presented in the same language and the same order in this
research questionnaire. The study is a random sampling where any variable in the population
is found in the sample with an equal probability.

3.3 RESEARCH DESIGN

The system of the research methods and techniques selected by a researcher in the research
design. The design enables researchers to concentrate on study methods appropriate for the
subject and set up their studies for success. The design of the topic of the research tells us about

28
the type of research that must be used. Typically, an impactful study design produces minimal
data biases and improves confidence in the precision of the data obtained. The study is set up
for success through proper research design. Practical analysis studies include precise and
unbiased perspectives.

The essence of the research applicable to the project is descriptive. This approach has been
used to produce meaningful results through hypothesis and assessment. The forces that occur
in a particular situation on a given day are causal and effect interactions, but they also affect
the variables that determine the causes’ relationship. A researcher using a descriptive design is
only interested in explaining the circumstance or case under investigation. It’s a theory-based
design approach that involves collecting, evaluating, and presenting data. This enables a
researcher to explain why and how research is conducted. Descriptive design aids others in
comprehending the research’s need.

3.4 SAMPLING DESIGN

It refers to picking out the samples based on statistical aspects. Generally, it derives out from
the population of interest. It acts as a significant aspect of research studies. The population of
interest represents many individuals who are applying for the study. They are termed as
respondents. In this study, the researcher considers the respondents to be customers who
consume FMCG Products in India.

3.4.1 SAMPLING TECHNIQUE

Sampling techniques are of two types, namely probability and non-probability sampling. In
this study, sampling techniques used to be a non-probability sampling method. The
convenience sampling method uses to meet the desired objective at the highest level.
Similarly, some recent theoretical work supports the convenience sampling method, and hence
the researcher uses the same in the study. There will be the use of Simple Random Sampling.

3.4.2 SAMPLING SIZE

The sample size shows the number of interviewees from the total population surveyed chosen.
In an earlier analysis, however, Dilmini (2020) used a sample size of 190 to assess the consumer
buying behaviour of the consumers in the FMCG Industry. Nonetheless, another analysis by

29
Ashwin et al. (2017) using 150 respondents offers direct proof of customer behaviour. But our
research has more than 170 respondents, and it is also clear that ample opinion is widely
available for respondents to achieve an acceptable outcome.

The sampling size for the study has been divided into two parts each of three months, i.e.

➢ Three months of Pre-Covid-19 (January 2020 – March 2020) and then the period of
lockdown, which is from (March 2020 - May 2020).
➢ Three months during Covid-19 (June 2020 - August 2020) and the period of lockdown
(March 2020 - May 2020).

In this research, the period of March-May in which the lockdown was stringent around the
country is the intersection period, which will help us find out whether there was any significant
change in consumer behaviour for the FMCG market- pre & during covid, for which we are
conducting research.

3.4.3 TARGET POPULATION

Large numbers of individuals are typically randomly surveyed to generalise the research to the
population it represents.

3.5 DATA COLLECTION & TECHNIQUE USED

Data collection is characterised by standard validated techniques as the method of gathering,
measuring, and analysing accurate insights for the study. Based on collected data, a researcher
may test their hypothesis. In most cases, irrespective of the field of study, data collection is the
first and most important step in the analysis process. Depending on the necessary details, the
method of data collection s different for different areas of research.

The most important data collection goal is to ensure that statistical analysis gathers information-
rich and accurate data so that data-driven decisions could be made for study.

Both primary and secondary data sources have been put into use while conducting this study.
First, the literature review was conducted based on secondary data collection to understand
better the background and issues related to the context of supply chain visibility. The primary
knowledge was then collected using questionnaires. These secondary data sources are books,
library databases, newspapers, websites, and other Internet sources. First, the author used the

30
focus group and the second Questionnaire to gather primary sources of information. The
researcher entirely relies on primary data to evaluate the change in the consumer buying
behaviour towards FMCG products pre and during covid. The study uses a research instrument
to measure the respondent’s opinion towards the change in consumer behaviour for the FMCG
market- pre & during covid. Secondary sources are used to identify the gaps in literature
sources

3.6 HYPOTHESIS
The hypothesis that we undertook in this study are:

H0- There was no change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre & During Covid.

H1- There was a change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre & During Covid.

H0- There is no relationship between the Residence of an Individual and the increase in the
frequency of buying FMCG products Online due to the Pandemic.
H1- There is a relationship between the Residence of an Individual and the increase in the
frequency of buying FMCG products Online due to the Pandemic.

H0- There is no relationship between the Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy
lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products.
H1- There is a relationship between the Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy
lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products.

3.7 PURPOSE OF RESEARCH

The purpose of the research for this paper is to get a clear and broader understanding of the
topic. The Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Industry has been one of the key areas
which have been in discussion for decades. The data of the FMCG Industry has been compared
before and after Covid-19. The research has been conducted to show how the global pandemic
has affected Consumer Behaviour in the Indian FMCG market. The data has been collected by
a Questionnaire as primary data is being used.

31
3.8. RESEARCH PROCESS
The various steps in the research process are as follows:

1. Problem Identification: Identifying an issue or formulating a research question is the

first step in the process. The research issue may be something that the agency
recognises as a problem, some expertise or information that the agency requires, or a
desire to identify a national recreation pattern.
2. Literature Review: The researcher must now learn more about the subject under review
now that the issue has been recognised. To do so, the researcher must conduct a review
of the literature relevant to the research question. This phase offers background
information on the problem area. The study of literature also informs the researcher
about previous studies that have been performed and how they were conducted.
3. Problem Clarification: The issue found in the first phase of the process is often too wide
or broad in nature. The researcher clarifies the issue and narrows the reach of the
analysis in phase three of the procedure. This can be achieved after a thorough study of
the literature. The expertise obtained from the literature review aids the researcher in
specifying and restricting the scope of their research project.
4. Properly Defined “Terms and Concepts”: Terms and concepts are terms or statements
that appear in the study’s research objective or definition. These terms must be specified
precisely as they refer to the analysis. Depending on who is reading the report, terms
or concepts can have various meanings. To avoid misunderstandings about the
meanings of words and phrases, the researcher must describe them precisely for the
analysis.
5. Defining the Population: Research initiatives can concentrate on a particular
demographic, services, park growth, employee reviews, programs, financial status,
marketing activities, or the incorporation of technology into operations. The research
issue and study’s intent aid the researcher in determining which group to include in the
study.
6. Creating the “Instrumentation Plan”: The instrumentation plan is the study’s overall
strategy. The instrumentation plan acts as a road map for the whole study, laying out
who will be involved, how, where, and where data will be collected, and what the
program will entail.
7. Data Collection: After the instrumentation plan is finished, the data collection phase of
the analysis starts. Data collection is an important phase in gathering the information

32
 required to address the research question. Data may be gathered in the set of speech on
a sample, a questionnaire, observations, or information from the literature.
8. Analysing the Data: This is where all of the time, effort, and money spent on steps 1
through 7 of the study process come to a head. Finally, the researcher has data to
examine in order to address the research query. The researcher observes how the data
would be interpreted in the instrumentation plan. The researcher is now analysing the
data in accordance with the strategy.

3.9 RESEARCH TOOLS

The following research tools have been used in this research:

➢ Descriptive Statistics

➢ Cross Tabulations

➢ ANOVA Test

➢ Correlation Test

➢ Chi-Square Test

➢ Paired Sample T-Test

➢ Cronbach's Alpha Test for Reliability

33
 CHAPTER- IV
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
4. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

4.1 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS

Table 4. 1 Age of respondents

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative
Percent Percent

Valid Below 18 6 3.2 3.2 3.2

years
108 56.8 56.8 60.0
18-25 years
56 29.5 29.5 89.5
25-45 years
20 10.5 10.5 100.0
Above 45
years 190 100.0 100.0
Total

Interpretation: The table makes it clear that out of the 190 respondents, 3.2% belonged to the
age group of Below 18 years, followed by 56.8% belonging to the age group of 18-25, followed
by 29.5% of respondents belonging to the criteria of 25-45 years and then finally 10.5% of the
respondents belonging to the criteria of 45 & above.

Figure 4. 1 Age of respondents

34
Table 4. 2 Gender of respondents

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Male 106 55.8 55.8 55.8

82 43.2 98.9
Female 43.2

Prefer not to say 2 1.1 1.1 100.0

Total 190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the above table, we can understand that out of the 190 respondents,
55.8% of the respondents were Male (106), and the remaining 43.2% respondents were Female
(82). At the same time, 1.1% of Individuals in the respondents did not prefer revealing their
gender (2).

Figure 4. 2 Gender of respondents

35
Table 4. 3 Educational qualification of respondents

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid High School 17 8.9 8.9 8.9

Undergraduate 83 43.7 43.7 52.6

Post Graduate 94.7

80 42.1 42.1
Doctorate 100.0
10 5.3 5.3
Total
190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the table above, we can understand that 8.9% of the respondents were
High School students, 43.7% of the respondents were Undergraduate, 42.1% of the
respondents were Post Graduate’s, and finally, 5.3% had a Doctorate degree.

Figure 4. 3 Educational qualification of respondents

36
Table 4. 4 Occupation of the respondents

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Student 102 53.7 53.7 53.7

Employed 58 30.5 30.5 84.2

Self-Employed 8.9
17 8.9 93.2

Homemaker 6.8
13 6.8 100.0

Total
190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the above table, we can see that 53.7% of the respondents were students,
30.5% of the respondents were employed, 8.9% of the employees were Self- Employed, and
6.8% of the respondents were Homemakers.

Figure 4. 4 Occupation of respondents

37
Table 4. 5 Annual income (Rupees) of respondents

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Below 1.5 lakh 89 46.8 46.8 46.8

1.5 to 5.5 lakh 28 14.7 14.7 61.6

Above 5.5 lakh 73 38.4 38.4 100.0

Total
190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the table above, we can understand that 46.8% (89) of the respondents
had an annual income below Rs 1.5 Lakhs, 14.7% (28) of the respondents had an annual income
between 1.5 to 5.5 Lakhs, 38.4% (73) of the respondents had an annual income above 5.5 Lakhs

Figure 4. 5 Annual income (Rupees) of respondents

38
Table 4. 6 Residence of respondents

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Valid Urban 181 95.3 95.3 95.3

Rural 9 4.7 4.7 100.0

Total 190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the table above, we can understand that, out of 190 respondents, 95.3%
(181) respondents belonged to Urban areas and that the remaining 4.7% (9) of the
respondents belonged to rural areas.

Figure 4. 6 Residence of respondents

39
Table 4. 7 Panic buying situation in the country

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Strongly disagree 2 1.1 1.1 1.1

Disagree 3 1.6 1.6 2.6

Maybe 11.1
16 8.4 8.4

Agree 43.7
62 32.6 32.6
Strongly Agree 100.0
107 56.3 56.3
Total
190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the table above, we can understand that 1.1% Strongly Disagree with
the fact that there was a panic buying situation across the country at the onset of the pandemic.
1.6% of the respondents Disagree, 8.4% are not very sure. Whereas on the other side 32.6% of
the respondents agree, and 56.3% Strongly Agree that there was a panic buying situation across
the country at the onset of the pandemic.

Figure 4. 7 Panic buying situation in the country

40
Table 4. 8 Purchase of health care products for a healthy lifestyle

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Ayurvedic immunity- 107 56.3 56.3

boosting products 56.3

Non ayurvedic immunity 30 15.8 15.8

boosting products 72.1

Others
53 27.9 27.9 100.0

Total
190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the table above, we can understand that there has been an increase in
sales of Immunity Boosting products as well as other Healthcare supplements as compared to
the sales before the pandemic. Out of 190 respondents, 107 (56.3%) are purchasing Ayurvedic
Immunity Boosting products, whereas 30 (15.8%) are purchasing Non-Ayurvedic Immunity
Boosting Products and 53 (27.9%) are buying other health care products to enhance their
immunity.

Figure 4. 8 Purchase of health care products for a healthy lifestyle

41
Table 4. 9 Purchase led by fear of product unavailability in the near future
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent

Valid Strongly disagree 19 10.0 10.0 10.0

Disagree 23 12.1 12.1 22.1

Maybe 18.4
35 18.4 40.5
Agree 32.1
61 32.1 72.6
Strongly Agree 27.4
52 27.4 100.0
Total 100.0
190 100.0

Interpretation: From the above table, we can understand that, out of 190 respondents, 10% of
the respondents Strongly Disagree that their purchase at the onset of the pandemic was led by
the fear of unavailability of products in the near future. 12.1% people Disagree, whereas 18.4%
people are indecisive. On the contrary, 32.1% of respondents Agree, and 27.4% Strongly Agree
that their purchase was led by fear of unavailability of the products in the near future.

Figure 4. 9 Purchase led by fear of product unavailability in the near future

42
Table 4. 10 Involvement in Hoarding of products for your own safeguard?

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Strongly disagree 18 9.5 9.5 9.5

Disagree 24 12.6 12.6 22.1

Maybe
43 22.6 22.6 44.7
Agree
63 33.2 33.2 77.9
Strongly Agree
42 22.1 22.1 100.0
Total
190 100.0 100.0

Interpretation: From the above table, we can understand that, out of 190 respondents, 9.5%
of the respondents Strongly Disagree that they were involved in the hoarding of the products
for their own safeguard. 12.6% people Disagree, whereas 22.6% people are indecisive. On the
contrary, 33.2% of respondents Agree, and 22.1% Strongly Agree that they were involved in
the hoarding of the products for their own safeguard.

Figure 4. 10 Involvement in Hoarding of products for your own safeguard?

43
4.2 CORRELATION
The degree to which two variables are related is measured using correlation analysis.
Correlation analysis determines the correlation coefficient, which indicates how much one
variable changes as the other does. A linear association between two variables is found using
correlation analysis.

To study the influence of Residence on the increase in the frequency of buying FMCG
products Online due to the Pandemic

H0- There is no relationship between the Residence of an Individual and the increase in the
frequency of buying FMCG products Online due to the Pandemic.

H1- There is a relationship between the Residence of an Individual and the increase in the
frequency of buying FMCG products Online due to the Pandemic.

Table 4. 11 Correlation (1)

RESIDENCE Has the pandemic increased

eased
your frequency of buying FMCG
products online?

Pearson Correlation 1 -.271**

RESIDENCE Sig. (2-tailed) .001

N 190 190

Has the pandemic Pearson Correlation -.271** 1

increased your frequency
of buying FMCG products Sig. (2-tailed) .000
online?
N 190 190

**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Interpretation: From the above correlation table, it is clear that the relation between the two
variables is negatively correlated, having a -.271 correlation. Since the p-value is 0.001, which
is lower than 0.1, we will reject the null hypothesis, which is that there is no relationship
between the Residence of an Individual and the increase in the frequency of buying FMCG
products Online due to the Pandemic and accept the alternate hypothesis that there is a
relationship between the Residence of an Individual and the increase in the frequency of buying
FMCG products Online due to the Pandemic.

44
To study the influence of Gender on the rise in a healthy lifestyle as a result of the
pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products.

H0- There is no relationship between the Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy
lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products.

H1- There is a relationship between the Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy
lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products

Table 4. 12 Correlation (2)

Has the pandemic resulted in GENDER

a healthy lifestyle w.r.t food
consumption and immunity
boosting products?

Has the pandemic resulted in a Pearson Correlation 1 -.188**

healthy lifestyle w.r.t food Sig. (2-tailed) .009

consumption and immunity-
190
boosting products? N 190
1
GENDER Pearson Correlation -.188**

Sig. (2-tailed) .009

190
N 190

**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Interpretation:

From the above correlation table, it is clear that the relation between the two variables is
negatively correlated, having a -.188 correlation. Since the p-value is 0.009, which is lower
than 0.1, we will reject the null hypothesis which is, that there is no relationship between the
Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food
consumption and immunity-boosting products and accept the alternate hypothesis that there is
a relationship between the Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy lifestyle as a result
of the pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products.

45
4.3 ANOVA
The statistical method of analysis of variance, or ANOVA, divides observed variance data into
different components for use in additional studies. For three or more groups of data, a one-way
ANOVA is used to learn more about the relationship between the dependent and independent
variables.

Table 4. 13 Model summary

Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the

Estimate

1 .233a .054 .023 .985

a. Predictors: (Constant), EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION, GENDER, RESIDENCE,

ANNUAL INCOME, OCCUPATION, AGE

Interpretation:

R= .233. R is the multiple correlation coefficient. R is the measure of the quality of the
prediction of the dependent variable. R is the correlation between predicted scores (No. of
dependents, Education qualification, Residence, Occupation, Age, Annual Income (Rupees))
and the actual scores of the dependent variable (Out of all FMCG products, was buying food
your utmost priority?). A value of 0.233 indicates a low level of positive correlation.

R Square = .054. The independent variable explains 5.4% of the variability of the dependent
variable in this model.

Adjusted R Square = .023. The independent variable explains 2.3% of the variability of the
dependent variable in the population.

46
 Table 4. 14 ANOVA

Model Sum of df Mean Square F Sig.

Squares
1 Regression 10.223 6 1.704 1.756 .111b

Residual 177.593 183 .970

187.816 189
Total

a. Dependent Variable: Out of all FMCG products, was buying food your utmost priority?
b. Predictors: (Constant), EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION, GENDER, RESIDENCE, ANNUAL INCOME,
OCCUPATION, AGE

Interpretation:

Statistical significance. The F-ratio in the ANOVA table is the ratio of the mean sum of squares
for regression to the mean sum of squares for the residuals. It tests whether the regression model
is a good fit for the data. The table above shows that the independent variables statistically
significantly predict the dependent variable. F (6,183) – 1.756 . p > .0005 (i.e., the regression
model is a good fit for the data).

4.4 CROSS TABULATION

Cross tabulation is a tool for analysing the relationship between multiple variables
quantitatively. Cross tabulation, also known as contingency tables or cross tabs, groups
variables to explain the relationship between them. It also demonstrates how correlations shift
when you move from one variable grouping to the next.

Table 4. 15 Gender and increase in the frequency of buying FMCG products online due to the
pandemic Crosstabulation

Count
Has the pandemic increased your frequency of buying FMCG products online? Total

Strongly Disagree Maybe Agree Strongly Agree

disagree

Male 6 5 20 40 35 106

GENDER Female 10 6 21 23 22 82

Prefer not to say 1 0 1 0 0 2

63
Total 17 11 42 57 190

47
 Interpretation:

Table 15 shows the relationship between the Gender of respondents and their corresponding
increase in the frequency of buying FMCG products online due to pandemic. From the table,
we can clearly see that out of the total 190 respondents, 106 are Male, and 82 are Female. Out
of 106 Male Respondents, 6 Strongly Disagree, 5 Disagree, and 20 are indecisive. Whereas 40
male respondents Agree and 35 Strongly Agree. Out of 82 Female respondents, 10 Strongly
Disagree, 6 Disagree and 21 are indecisive. Whereas 23 Agree and 22 Strongly Agree. 2
Respondents were not comfortable in revealing their gender, 1 Strongly Disagrees, and the
other one is indecisive. Therefore, from these results, we can firmly establish and say that the
majority of both Male and Female respondents agree that the pandemic has increased their
frequency of buying FMCG products online as compared to the Pre-Covid days.

Table 4. 16 Gender and reasons for purchasing FMCG products online crosstabulation

Why do you prefer purchasing FMCG goods online? Total

For Better Others

convenience discounts

and safety
reasons

65 32 9 106
Male

Female 59 12 11 82

GENDER
Prefer not to say 2 0 0 2

Total 126 44 20 190

Interpretation: Table 16 shows the relationship between Gender and the reasons for preferring
purchase of FMCG products online. From the table, we can clearly see that out of the total 190
respondents, 106 are Male, and 82 are Female. Out of 106 Male respondents, 65 choose online
purchase because of convenience and Safety reasons, 32 choose it for better discounts, and 9
Male respondents choose it for other reasons. Whereas, on the other hand, out of 82 Female
respondents, 59 choose online shopping because of convenience and other safety reasons, 12
choose it for better discounts, and 11 Female respondents choose online purchase for other
reasons. Out of 190 respondents, two don’t prefer to reveal their gender, but both choose the
online purchase of FMCG products because of convenience and safety reasons.

48
4.5 PAIRED SAMPLE T-TEST
For completing the research, we have used Paired sample T-test. The test has been used to find
out whether our hypothesis is true or not, that is, whether or not there was a significant impact
of Covid-19 on the share prices of the industries. The hypothesis is as follows:

H0- There is no change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre & During Covid

H1- There is a change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre & During Covid

Table 4. 17 Paired Samples Statistics

Mean N Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean

Pair 1 Which of the following 3.28 190 1.041 .075

methods do you prefer to
make purchases during the
pandemic?

2.05 190 .922 .067

Which of the following
methods did you prefer to
make purchases before the
pandemic?

Table 4. 18 Paired Samples Correlations

N Correlation Sig.

Pair 1 Which of the following methods do you

prefer to make purchases during the
pandemic?
& 190 .124 .089
Which of the following methods did you
prefer to make purchases before the
pandemic?

49
Table 4. 19 Paired Samples Test

Paired Differences t df Sig. (2-

tailed)
Mean Std. Std. 95%Confidence Interval
Deviation Error of the Difference

Mean Lower Upper

Which of the following

methods do you prefer to
make purchases during the
pandemic? – Which of the 1.237 1.302 .094 1.051 1.423 13.095 189 .000
following methods did you
prefer to make purchases
before the pandemic?
Pair 1

Interpretation:

From the above research, we can find out that Covid-19 has a significant impact on the
Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry-Pre and During Covid. Hence, we will accept our
alternate hypothesis and reject our null hypothesis. We can say that the significance value is
“.000<.05”, which means that our significance value is lesser than .05, which says that the
impact is significant. A lower p-value reduces the probability of a result that says that the null
hypothesis is true and would be accepted.

50
4.6 CHI-SQUARE TEST
The Chi-Square Test of Independence tests whether categorical variables are associated (i.e.,
whether the variables are independent or related). It's a test that isn't parametric. The ChiSquare
Test of Association is another name for this test.

Table 4. 20 Chi-Square Test

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-
sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 17.194a 8 .028

Likelihood Ratio 20.381 8 .009

Linear-by-Linear Association 1.467 1 .226

N of Valid Cases 190

a. 7 cells (46.7%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is
.04.

Table 4. 21 Symmetric Measures

Value Approx. Sig.

Phi .301 .028

Nominal by Nominal
Cramer's V .213 .028

N of Valid Cases 190

a. Not assuming the null hypothesis.

b. Using the asymptotic standard error assuming the null hypothesis.

Interpretation:

It is noticed that the Chi-Square test value is 17.194, but there are seven cells in the
crosstabulation that holds a value less than 5; hence we look forward to Fisher’s Exact test in
which p-value is > .05, so there is no significance present, and the factors are very much
independent of each other & no matter whether the respondent is male or female, it has no
impact on whether or not their purchase pattern is likely to stay the same post covid. Still, the
perception that the purchase pattern is likely to remain the same post covid has not changed
from our previous findings.

51
4.7 RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY TEST FOR QUESTIONNAIRE
Cronbach's alpha is the most widely used internal consistency metric ("reliability"). It's most
widely used when a survey/questionnaire contains several Likert questions that shape a scale,
and you want to see if the scale is Reliable.

Table 4. 22 Case Processing Summary

N %

Cases Valid 284 100.0

Excludeda
0 .0

Total 284 100.0

a. Listwise deletion based on all variables in the procedure.

Table 4. 23 Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's Alpha N of Items

.725 21

Interpretation:

From the above tables, we can conclude that Cronbach’s Alpha value is .725. The questionnaire
is Acceptable as the value lies between 0.7 - 0.8.

52
 CHAPTER: V
FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS &
CONCLUSIONS
5. FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS AND CONCLUSIONS

5.1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter consists of the findings of our research. It also contains suggestions that would
help the other researchers working on the same title. This chapter also contains the brief
explanations of all the activities that have been done in the course of this study.

5.2 FINDINGS

The findings from the research done above are as follows:

➢ 3.2% of respondents in our research are below the age of 18 years. 56.8% of
respondents are between the age category of 18-25 years. Also, an identical 29.5% of
respondents are between the age category of 25-45 years. Nearly 10.5% of respondents
are above the age of 45. Thus, it is observed that the highest number of respondents
who participated in our survey were between the age category of 18-25 years.
➢ Out of 190 respondents in our research, 106 respondents are Male, and 82 are Female.
At the same time, 2 respondents were not comfortable in revealing their gender. Thus
we can conclude that most of the respondents were male.
➢ 8.9% of respondents in our research are High School students. 43.7% of respondents
have an Undergraduate Degree, while 42.1% have a Post Graduate Degree, and 5.3%
of the respondents have an educational qualification of Doctorate. Therefore, it is
concluded that most of the respondents have an Undergraduate degree.
➢ Out of all the respondents, 53.7% are students. 30.5% of the respondents are employed,
and 8.9% are self-employed, whereas 6.8% are homemakers. Therefore, it is concluded
that the maximum respondents in the research are students.
➢ The respondents having an annual income (In Rupees) below 1.5 Lakh is 46.8%. The
respondents in the category of 1.5 to 5.5 Lakh annual income are 14.7%. At the same
time, 38.4% of respondents earn above 5.5 lakh annually. It can be concluded that the
maximum number of respondents in our research earn below 1.5 Lakh annually.
➢ Out of the total 190 respondents, 181 respondents live in urban areas, which accounts
for 95.3%. On the contrary, only 9 respondents live in rural areas, which accounts for

53
 4.7%. Thus, we can conclude that majority of respondents in our research live in Urban
areas.

➢ By using Descriptive Statistics, it was found that there was a panic buying situation in
the country for the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) products at the onset of the
pandemic. Out of 190 respondents, 56.3% respondents Strongly Agree, and 32.6%
Agree that the consumers were indulged in Panic Buying. 11.1% of respondents were
indecisive about their consumer behaviour. At the same time, 1.6% Disagree, and 1.1%
of respondents Strongly Disagree that there was a panic buying situation in the country
at the onset of the pandemic for FMCG products.
➢ It was found that there was a major change in consumer behaviour before and after the
Covid-19 pandemic, as 27.4% of the respondents Strongly Agree and 32.1% of the
respondents Agree that their purchase of FMCG products was driven by the fear of
product unavailability in the near future. 18.4% of the respondents were indecisive if
their buying behaviour was driven by this fear. On the contrary, 12.1% Disagree, and
10% Strongly Disagree that their consumer behaviour was driven by the fear of product
unavailability in the near future.
➢ There was another major change in consumer behaviour during the Covid-19 pandemic
because out of 190 respondents. 22.1% of the respondents Strongly Agree, and 33.2%
Agree that they were involved in the hoarding of the essential FMCG products for their
own safeguard. At the same time, only 12.6% of the respondents Disagree, and 9.5%
Strongly Disagree that they were involved in the Hoarding of the products for their own
safeguard. At the same time, 22,6% of the respondents were indecisive.
➢ It was found that the respondents majorly tried to live a healthy lifestyle or completely
adapt themselves to a healthy lifestyle as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, for which
they did not make efforts before the pandemic. This change in lifestyle resulted in an
increase in the purchase of various immunity boosters and other health care products.
Out of 190 respondents, 56.3% chose Ayurvedic immunity-boosting products, 15.8%
chose Non-Ayurvedic immunity-boosting products, and 27.9% chose other health care
supplements. It can be concluded that the majority of consumers opted for Ayurvedic
immunity-boosting products.
➢ To study the influence of Residence on the increasing frequency of buying Fast Moving
Consumer Goods (FMCG) products online due to the global pandemic, a Correlation
test was undertaken. The Null hypothesis was “There is no relationship between the

54
 Residence of an Individual and the increasing frequency of buying FMCG products
Online due to the Pandemic”, and the Alternate hypothesis was “There is a relationship
between the Residence of an Individual and the increasing frequency of buying FMCG
products Online due to the Pandemic.” It was found that there was a negative
correlation of -.271 between both the variables, and as the p-value was 0.001, which is
lower than 0.1, the null hypothesis was rejected, and the alternate hypothesis was
accepted.
➢ To study the influence of Gender on the rise in a healthy lifestyle as a result of the
pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting products, a Correlation test
was undertaken. The Null hypothesis was “There is no relationship between the Gender
of an Individual and the rise in a healthy lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food
consumption and immunity-boosting products”, and the Alternate hypothesis was
“There is a relationship between the Gender of an Individual and the rise in a healthy
lifestyle as a result of the pandemic w.r.t food consumption and immunity-boosting
products” It was found that there was a negative correlation of -.188 between both the
variables, and as the p-value was 0.009, which is lower than 0.1, the null hypothesis
was rejected, and the alternate hypothesis was accepted.
➢ A major shift or change in consumer behaviour during the covid pandemic as compared
to before the pandemic was that the people were keeping Food as their utmost priority
out of all the FMCG products. This was analysed using the Anova test, where the
Dependent Variable was “out of all FMCG products, was buying food your utmost
priority?” and the Independent variables were Age, Gender, Residence, Annual
Income, Occupation and Educational Qualification.
➢ It was found that R is equal to .233, which indicates there is a low level of Positive
Correlation between the Independent and Dependent Variables. The Independent
variable causes 5.4% variability of the Dependent variable in the model, and the
Independent variable causes 2.3% of the variability of the Dependent variable in the
population. It was also found that the regression model is a good fit for the data as [F
(6,183) – 1.756 . p> .0005]. Hence, we can conclude that Food was the utmost priority
for the respondents out of all FMCG products during the pandemic.
➢ Crosstabulation was done to understand the relation between the Gender of the
respondents and their corresponding increase in the frequency of purchasing FMCG
products online due to the pandemic. 33.1% of male respondents Strongly Agree, and
37.7% Agree. At the same time, 18.8% of the male respondents were indecisive about
55
 their buying behaviour. 4.7% of male respondents Disagree, and 5.6% Strongly
disagree. 26.8% of Female respondents Strongly Agree, and 28% of females Agree. On
the contrary, 7.3% of Female Disagree, 12.1% Strongly Disagree, and 25.6% of female
respondents are indecisive. Only two respondents did not reveal their gender, and their
opinions were strongly disagree and indecisive, respectively. From this, we conclude
that both Male and Female have increased their frequency of online purchase, but more
Male respondents have increased their frequency of buying FMCG products online in
comparison to the female respondents during the pandemic.
➢ Crosstabulation was done to understand the relation between the Gender of the
respondents and the reasons for preferring purchase of FMCG product online. 61.3%
of male respondents prefer online purchase because of convenience and safety reasons,
while 30.1% prefer it for better discounts, and 8.4% choose online purchase for other
reasons. At the same time, 71.9% of female respondents prefer purchasing FMCG
products online for convenience and safety reasons, while 14.6% prefer it for better
discounts, and 13.4% choose online purchase for other reasons. It was found that both
male and female respondents mainly prefer online purchase of FMCG products due to
convenience and safety reasons during the pandemic.
➢ Paired sample T-test was used to find out if there was a significant change in consumer
behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre & During Covid. After conducting the T-test, it was
found out that the pandemic, that is, Covid-19 has a significant impact on the consumer
behaviour of the respondents for FMCG products. The above tests also clearly highlight
that the consumer behaviour of the respondents for FMCG products have been affected
by the global pandemic when compared with the consumer behaviour before the
pandemic started.
➢ The results showed that the significance value >.005, which indicates that there was a
significant impact of the pandemic on consumer behaviour. As the results suggest, the
null hypothesis “There is no change in Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre
& During Covid” had to be rejected, and the alternate hypothesis “There is a change in
Consumer Behaviour for FMCG Industry- Pre & During Covid” was accepted, which
says that there was a significant impact of the pandemic.
➢ Chi-Square test was done to understand the association between the Gender of
respondents and if their purchase pattern would remain the same post covid. It was
found that the Chi-Square test value is 17.194, but as there were seven cells in the
crosstabulation that held a value less than 5; we looked forward to Fisher’s Exact test
56
 in which p-value was > .05, so there is no significance present, and the factors are very
much independent of each other & no matter whether the respondent is male or female,
it has no impact on whether or not their purchase pattern is likely to stay the same post
covid. Still, the perception that the purchase pattern is likely to remain the same post
covid has not changed from our previous findings.
➢ Reliability and Validity Test was performed to check the reliability of the questionnaire
in this research. In the test, the Cronbach’s Alpha value was .725. Hence, it was found
that the questionnaire is acceptable as the value lies between 0.7- 0.8.

5.3 SUGGESTIONS
In the field of Marketing, especially the companies under Fast Moving Consumer Goods
(FMCG) Industry must focus on analysing consumer behaviour properly and its probable
impact on the sales of their products. While developing their strategies, the companies must
analyse the market information, global scenario, etc., to find out how these factors affect the
sale of various products that they deal in. It is very important for companies dealing with
FMCG products to adapt themselves to these sudden changes that they have come across due
to the global pandemic. The companies which adapt themselves to the changing conditions at
the earliest will come out victorious.

Increased demand from rural India is likely to be fueled by reverse migration, a strong
monsoon, and increased government spending through The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) and other public projects. This a very big opportunity
for the FMCG companies to get hold of. To ensure that the products meet customers ordering
online, the FMCG companies should form partnerships with delivery companies such as
Zomato, Swiggy, Dominos, Big Basket, and Dunzo. Since the lockdown caused people to
become accustomed to online shopping and the convenience of home-delivered groceries, there
will be a rise in demand.

As found in the research, more people are adapting to a healthy lifestyle because of the
lockdown during the pandemic, which leads to an increase in sales of Immunity boosters and
other health supplements. Hence, it is a good opportunity for FMCG companies to enter into
the production of these products as it will help the companies generate more revenue.

57
5.4. CONCLUSION
The study’s primary objective is to ascertain the change in consumer behaviour for FMCG
Industry- pre & during covid. It was found in the research that there is a major shift in the
consumer buying behaviour for the products in Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG)
Industry before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, people spent on
various FMCG products like Packaged Food, Fruits and Vegetables, Consumer electronics,
Medicines and Toiletries etc.

Whereas on the onset of the pandemic purchasing food became the utmost priority of the
majority population in the country. Their purchase was driven by the fear of unavailability of
products in the near future, which lead to a situation where people were involved in hoarding
products for their own safeguard.

Before the pandemic, people preferred shopping methods like Kirana store, Departmental store
and Supermarkets. Whereas, during the pandemic majority of people opted for online stores as
their main preference for the purchase of FMCG products. There was a sudden surge in the sale
of FMCG products through online platforms, and this was majorly because people found it
convenient and for other safety reasons.

There was an increase in the sale of health care products and immunity boosters as people are
adopting a healthier lifestyle during the Covid-19 pandemic, and many companies introduced
their own health care products to capture the market. Through the findings in the research, it is
predicted that the purchase pattern is likely to remain the same even post covid.

Despite the fact that the planet has experienced a financial collapse before, the influence of
covid-19 is unusually different because the pandemic is expanding rapidly, causing a great deal
of confusion in the market. This has made a negative impact on various business activities.

Normalcy will return to the Indian economy after the pandemic is over, all the sectors which
have suffered losses will begin to move in a favourable direction, and, just like in the past,
growth will be quicker than predicted while ensuring employment growth in the nation.

58
5.5. SCOPE OF FUTURE RESEARCH
The observation of the change in Consumer Behaviour for Fast Moving Consumer Goods
(FMCG) Industry and its interpretation of Pre-and Post-COVID-19 factors has carved out a
broad forum for analysts to continue studying the impact of the same on FMCG Industry and
the country's economy in the coming days. We hope that by contributing to the abovementioned
subject, the researchers can broaden the scope of their research.

59
ANNEXURE

1) Age

a. Below 18 years

b. 18-25 years

c. 25-45 years

d. Above 45 years

2) Gender

a. Male

b. Female

c. Prefer not to say

3) Educational qualification

a. High School

b. Undergraduate

c. Graduate

d. Doctorate

4) Occupation

a. Student

b. Employed

c. Self-Employed

d. Homemaker

60
5) Annual income

a. Below 1.5 lakh

b. 1.5 to 5.5 lakh

c. Above 5.5 lakh

6) Residence

a. Urban

b. Rural

7) Rate your expenditure on the following items before Covid-19?

Products 1 2 3 4 5
Packaged Food
Dairy products
Fruits and Vegetables
Stationery items
Laundry products
Consumer electronics
Toiletries
Beverages
Medicines
Meat

8) Rate your expenditure on the following items during Covid-19?

Products 1 2 3 4 5
Packaged Food
Dairy products
fruits and vegetables
Stationery items

61
 Laundry products
Consumer electronics
Toiletries
Beverages
Medicines
Meat

9) Which of the following methods did you prefer to make purchases before the pandemic?

a. Departmental store

b. Supermarket

c. Kirana store

d. Online store

10) Which of the following methods do you prefer to make purchases during the pandemic?

a. Departmental store

b. Supermarket

c. Kirana store

d. Online store

11) Did you purchase FMCG products online before Covid-19?

a. Very Rarely

b. Rarely

c. Sometimes

d. Often

e. Very Often

62
12) Has the pandemic increased your frequency of buying FMCG products online?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

e. Strongly Agree

13) Why do you prefer purchasing FMCG goods online?

a. For convenience and safety reasons

b. Better discounts

c. Others

14) Do you believe there was a panic buying situation across the country in the wake of the
pandemic?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

e. Strongly Agree

15) Were you involved in the Hoarding of products for your own safeguard?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

63
e. Strongly Agree

16) Was your purchase driven by the fear of product unavailability in the near future?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

e. Strongly Agree

17) Out of all FMCG products, was buying food your utmost priority?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

e. Strongly Agree

18) What are the most health and safety products you have purchased during the outbreak?

a. Hand sanitisers

b. Handwash/soaps

c. Face Masks

d. Hand Gloves

e. Antiseptic

f. Cold and flu remedies

g. Cough remedies
h. Antibiotics
64
i. Bath and shower wipe

j. Others

19) Has the pandemic resulted in a healthy lifestyle w.r.t food consumption and immunity
boosting products?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

e. Strongly Agree

20) Which healthcare products did you purchase more often for a healthy lifestyle?

a. Ayurvedic immunity-boosting products

b. Non-ayurvedic immunity-boosting products

c. Others

21) Is your purchase pattern likely to stay the same post covid?

a. Strongly disagree

b. Disagree

c. Maybe

d. Agree

e. Strongly Agree

65
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