Abstract

The Retail Industry has faced severe disruption across the world due to COVID 19 pandemic. The Retail sectors has faced many transformations in past few years, from digitalization and the advancement of technology to decline of the high street. However the impact of Coronavirus has affected the sector severely. The pandemic have upended the sector, which results in forcing the closure of Bricks and mortars and also causing uncertainty in future. The retailers are currently struggling to serve customer effectively through other channels because of such unexpected uncertainty. The quick impact of the pandemic included sudden increase in demand for essential goods and services, a intensifying of the healthcare and the financial crisis, reduced employment opportunities, and a sudden decline in demand for non-essential goods and services. The lockdown decision taken by the Government of India has impacted the country's domestic economy and moved it into a dark and alarming zone, which has severally impacted MSME's and small retailers. Global Financial institutions have reported Lowered GDP growth of the Country post covid outbreak. As regional and national economies have initiated the process of "reopening," a great deal of thinking and discussion has gone into predicting what the new normal will look like post-COVID. This research paper took a closer look at the effects of the coronavirus on the Indian retail industry to reveal the upcoming opportunities, and what to expect in new normal.