While the coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted businesses globally, there are some companies that actually thrived during this challenging time.
Below are some of the companies whose businesses actually boomed amid the coronavirus pandemic due to changes in the behavior of consumers. The virus has forced governments to implement lockdowns, creating opportunities for these firms.
Peloton
With gyms and health clubs closed down due to stay-at-home orders and lockdowns, the in-home workout products of Peloton, including bikes and treadmills, became more attractive not only to health buffs but also to people looking to get some exercise while confined in their homes.
For the first three months of the year, Peloton reported a 66% surge in revenue and a 30% increase in membership for its app. As a result, the company is raising its full-year forecast as it doesn't expect demand to fall anytime soon.
Reckitt Benckiser and Clorox Company
The spread of the coronavirus has forced people all over the world to develop a habit of sanitizing, bleaching and cleaning everything and anything they come into contact. This trend favored the companies making the world's top cleaning products.
British company Reckitt Benckiser, maker of Lysol and Dettol, posted record sales for the first quarter. The firm reported a 13.5% increase in sales because of "strong consumer demand" for disinfectants.
Meanwhile, Clorox last week posted a 15% surge in its overall sales for the first quarter of the year. This was because the company's cleaning segment, which includes its wipes and beaches, reported a jump in sales by 32%.
Nintendo, Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts
For the first three months of 2020, the financial performance of video game firms significantly improved. Overall, the gaming industry has seen a spike in sales in recent weeks as more people turn to their entertainment services.
Nintendo's current flagship video game console, the Switch, experienced a 34% increase in sales year-on-year last quarter as the company sold 3.29 million units. Its latest game, "Animal Crossing: New Horizons", sold 11.77 million units by the end of March.
Activision Blizzard, the developer of the Call of Duty (CoD) video game series, said that during the quarter, an average of 407 million people had played its games online monthly. Its latest CoD game, “Call of Duty: Warzone”, has attracted over 60 million players since it launched in March.
On the other hand, Activision’s rival company Electronic Arts announced that its latest FIFA football game has attracted over 25 million players while its American football game “Madden NFL 20” scored the highest online engagement numbers in the franchise’s history.
The gaming giant said its net income had doubled to $418 million as it recorded a revenue of $1.4 billion in the first three months of the year.
3M
According to 3M, the pandemic boosted sales of its personal safety products, including gowns and the N95 respirator masks used by medical professionals. As a result, the company's first-quarter revenue grew by almost 3% to $8.08 billion.
Zoom
The video conferencing app Zoom has become the pandemic's breakout brand as its stock went up by as much as 120% for the year. Zoom chief executive officer (CEO) Eric Yuan said it currently hosts 300 million meeting participants daily.
