The Pandemic is an Opportunity for Entrepreneurs Despite the many business hurdles it has caused, the moment is here to launch new ideas.
By Joy Chen
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
The past 18 months have been a challenge for nearly all businesses, but entrepreneurs should view the upcoming months as an opportunity to launch their new business ideas as the world continues to adjust to our new normal. Although many entrepreneurs put their ideas on hold at the beginning of the pandemic due to its uncertainty, Victor Casale, former Chief Chemist of MAC Cosmetics and founder of CoverFX, and I launched a custom skincare brand in September 2020 to meet the shifting skin needs of consumers that we were seeing in the market. While launching, we were presented with unexpected challenges, but we learned much about what consumers were looking for and adapted to this brand-new business environment.
Related: How to Become a Successful Entrepreneur During the Pandemic
Move fast to keep up with the consumer
During the pandemic, online spending increased drastically and growth in e-commerce brought new opportunities for entrepreneurs to meet consumers where they are — especially with brands launching online. Consumer spending habits changed virtually overnight, leaving room for businesses to appeal to their target audiences in new and interesting ways, whether it was via new social media platforms like TikTok or sticking to traditional advertising.
Moving forward, consumer behavior will continue to shift at a fast pace and brands that are able to continually monitor the shifts will be best positioned for success in the post-pandemic environment. Brands that can't keep up with the digital transition will be forced to slow their operations, leaving room for new brands to market their products in a less competitive landscape. Additionally, the pandemic caused consumers to expect more from the brands they love, including more sustainable options and a quicker turnaround time when it comes to receiving their products. As the future remains unclear, brands must remain creative and flexible to adapt to the new needs of consumers.
Turning the pandemic into an opportunity
Whenever there is a big societal change, whether it's an economic downturn, a global event or a global pandemic, consumers' needs change, creating opportunity for new businesses to step up and meet those needs. For example, in the beauty industry, consumers' skin needs changed with daily mask-wearing, causing many to develop "maskne" and other skin irritations. Our company's custom offerings were able to meet those specific needs during a time when many consumers were unable to leave their homes to visit their regular dermatologists and estheticians.
From a business continuity standpoint, there is a big talent pool available to new businesses due to pandemic-related layoffs and the Great Resignation that is currently taking place. With brands continuing to operate remotely, the talent pool is even larger as business leaders have an opportunity to hire professionals across the country and across the world.
Related: 4 Tips for Discovering a Great Business Idea During the Pandemic
Lessons learned from launching
Whether you're launching a business during a global pandemic or not, the business idea has to be strong, innovative and viable. Our model is a scientifically proven, custom skincare brand. My business partner and I knew that the consumer appeal for customized skincare was prevalent before the pandemic, and Covid-19 only caused more interest from consumers with the increase in new skin concerns. An essential point to keep in mind when preparing for a launch is that it's okay if you don't have all of the answers — testing and learning is an ongoing process when launching any business. When Victor and I launched over a year ago, we knew that we would learn a lot in the first year that would allow for us to fine tune our business idea. The key is to ensure you have a roadmap for your first year that involves testing, learning and an expansion plan.
One challenge that remains ongoing for all brands during this time is the issue of supply chain. It's critical that new business leaders — and seasoned leaders — take supply chain into account when making plans to launch a brand. When launching our company, we made a decision early on to source our ingredients and packaging closer to our headquarters to try and avoid delays in an already tough market. Although we made this bet in 2020, looking ahead helped a great deal as the supply chain issue has only gotten worse. When launching a business, it's important to account for all possibilities — even the unthinkable.
While the pandemic posed new challenges for entrepreneurs and business leaders, it also opened up unexpected opportunities. It's critical that entrepreneurs understand the advantages of launching a business during this time and turn the clear challenges into opportunities for a new brand or idea in the months ahead.
Related: 5 Lessons I Learned From Launching a Startup During The Pandemic
