Research
18 May 2022
Shoppers are returning to pre-pandemic habits
The Tradeswell InFORM Report provides data on consumer demand for the first quarter of 2022.

(Illustration by Tradeswell)
The Tradeswell InFORM Report provides data on consumer demand for the first quarter of 2022.
(Illustration by Tradeswell)
Welcome to Data File. In this weekly feature, The Current shares key findings shaping the ecommerce landscape. This week, we're sharing a section from Tradeswell's InFORM Report Q1 2022, which provides insights on ecommerce finance, operations, retail and marketing. Download the full report here.
We broke down our consumer demand metric based on industries with the largest demand growth and decline. Investigating consumer demand trends allows you to understand how shoppers are shifting their buying habits, better predict sales, and make informed decisions around advertising and inventory.
Based on search term rankings and the volume of search terms, we identified the industries with the largest growth and decreases in consumer demand, along with how shopping trends are pivoting, as we emerge from the pandemic.
The Industrial and Scientific category, which includes rapid COVID tests and face masks, had the highest YoY growth rate from Q1 2021 to Q1 2022 at 405%. This correlates with COVID infection patterns. January 2022 saw the highest spike in COVID cases, likely causing the increased demand for tests and masks. Baby is another category that increased in consumer demand with a 286% increase in growth YoY in Q1 2022. Early in the pandemic, many experts believed there would be a baby boom with more people staying home. Instead, birth rates dropped in 2020. Based on our data and supporting outside research, we expect to see a rise in births in the coming year. Bank of America found that pregnancy test sales are up 13% YoY since 2020—a strong indication that there will be more births in 2022.
(Chart by Tradeswell)
With more people returning to offices, it comes as no surprise that sales of products in the Office Products category grew nearly 34% YoY in Q1 2022. According to a study by Microsoft, 50% of leaders say they already require or plan to require employees to return to in-person work full-time in the next year. Major companies, including Microsoft, Apple, Ford, and Wells Fargo, have all announced they will require employees to be back in the office on at least hybrid models—driving increased demand for office supplies.
(Chart by Tradeswell)
While many pandemic-driven online habits are here to stay, our findings suggest that shoppers are returning to physical stores for groceries.
Online consumer demand for groceries decreased 79% YoY. The availability of vaccines and drop in mask mandates have made shoppers feel more comfortable browsing for groceries in an aisle rather than from their couch. Another factor contributing to the drop in online grocery shopping is the increase in grocery prices due to the war in Ukraine. In-person shopping is less convenient, but it allows people to easily compare prices and products, and there’s no delivery and tip fee on top of the bill.
Remember when baking sourdough bread was all the rage? A survey by Lending Tree found that six out of ten Americans picked up a new hobby during the pandemic, but the return to pre-pandemic lifestyles has resulted in people abandoning these new activities. Arts, Crafts, and Sewing saw a 63% decline in consumer demand YoY, and Musical Instruments saw a 45% decline in consumer demand YoY. People are also spending less on Home and Garden products as they spend more time out of their homes.
Ask Instacart answers prompts with personalized recommendations.
A pair of recent launches from Instacart highlight how the grocery ecommerce company is integrating two of the key emerging areas of technology into its offerings: Generative AI and marketplaces.
Let’s take a look:
Instacart is seeking to harness generative AI to create a more personalized shopping experience.
A new tool called Ask Instacart that is launching this week is designed to allow customers to type in questions about specific recipes or general recommendations for an occasion. Embedded in the search bar, Ask Instacart also provides personalized questions to be asked by customers. In addition to specific items, it provides information about food preparation, product attributes and dietary considerations.
For those eying how generative AI will play a role in the shopping experience, Ask Instacart shows how search can be transformed into a place for discovery. Instacart is aiming to provide answers to the more open-ended questions that people would naturally ask, not just simply provide info in response to a question that has one answer. It shared the following sample prompts:
The tool is also showing the way for generative AI to integrate with retail media. Ask Instacart is designed to integrate with a brand's sponsored products campaign, so that the answers to questions that match consumer needs can also provide a way for brands to stand out.
To create the tool, Instacart combined the language understanding of ChatGPT with its own AI models. It added in catalog data from 80,000 retail partner locations around the country, which together have more than one billion shoppable items.
Beyond mission: Ecommerce marketplaces have honed a shopping experience where it’s easy to find what you’re looking for. But if shoppers want to happen upon something they didn’t know they needed, social media or the store is still the best place to visit. Instacart is showing how generative AI can make discovery a marketplace function. It also signals that advertising will come to generative AI by way of retail media. Going forward, the growth of discovery could make retail media more valuable as a tool for advertising that raises brand awareness, not just lower-funnel conversions.
Instacart will power a new virtual convenience store for the grocery chain Aldi.
Aldi Express will feature 2,000 of the most-shopped Aldi items, ranging from prepared food and snacks to grocery staples.
Drawing on 2,100 Aldi locations around the country, items will be delivered as fast as 30 minutes, the companies said.
“Through ALDI Express, we’re making shopping more convenient so you can satisfy a craving or get a missing ingredient in minutes,” said Scott Patton, VP of National Buying at ALDI, in a statement. “Together with Instacart, we’ll continue to find ways to innovate and make the online grocery experience even more effortless and accessible.”
Aldi began offering delivery via Instacart in 2017, and has since expanded services to include pickup as well as alcohol delivery.
Aldi’s marketplace moment? While Aldi previously offered delivery, making the assortment available through a virtual store offers the opportunity to create a marketplace for its goods. With the virtual store, it will more closely resemble DoorDash and Uber Eats, which have been expanding their grocery assortment. With a marketplace, additional revenue opportunities could open up for the grocer, such as advertising through retail media.