Discover what drives consumer trust in the new reality
2020 has left Canadian consumers in a different place than where they began. The pandemic has shifted Canadians' habits, priorities, and expectations, although some of our familiar traits are holding strong.
To better understand the Canadian consumer, we've collected insights from two KPMG International surveys — Me, my life, my wallet and Consumers and the new reality — to present a comprehensive view of their evolving needs and behaviours during this time.
Key themes uncovered include:
- Playing it safe: Canadians are saving more than they were prior to the pandemic but they're spending less on non-essential items.
- Rise in digital adoption: Canadians are getting more comfortable using apps and websites for shopping, with the usage of such tools increasing across all categories.
- Data privacy and security: Data protection is top of mind for Canadians. To feel more secure and encouraged to adopt digital channels they demand transparency, security and clear value exchange for their data.
- Desire to shop local and align to personal values: In light of current economic hardships, consumers have expressed a preference for supporting local Canadian businesses and for those that demonstrate a commitment to upholding environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) ideals.
- Changing customer service priorities: the most important qualities Canadians expect from businesses are their integrity and ability to resolve issues.
Ready to connect with Canadian consumers on their terms? We can help.
Let's do this.
Read our report below to learn more:
Peter Hughes
National Customer Practice Leader
KPMG in Canada
Kostya G. Polyakov
Partner, National Industry Leader, Consumer & Retail
KPMG in Canada
Compared to the rest of the world, Canadians feel relatively confident that it will be safe to return to stores in the near future. They tend to trust that the government and private businesses are taking the pandemic seriously and that they'll be safe when – and if – they feel confident in returning to stores.
We now have six months of curated information about the shopping habits of Canadian consumers, many of which are new to the online space. If we don't take advantage of those insights, and don't use them to further improve the customer experience or drive our digital investments, then a lot of the gains we're seeing today aren't going to stick.
Additional contacts
Katie Bolla
Partner, Management Consulting, GTA Consumer and Retail Industry Lead
KPMG in Canada
Daniel Ornstein
Partner
KPMG in Canada
Benoit Lacoste Bienvenue
Regional Managing Partner, Quebec Region, Partner, International Tax, Mergers & Acquisitions
KPMG in Canada
Luc Brousseau
National lead, E-commerce Center of Excellence
KPMG in Canada
