QUESTION OF THE WEEK: How Many US Consumers Are Changing Their Behavior Due to the Coronavirus Outbreak?
When Coresight Research surveyed US consumers on February 25–26, over one-quarter (27.5%) said that the coronavirus outbreak is prompting them to currently avoid, or limit their visits to, public areas or change their travel arrangements. Well over half of respondents (58.0%) expect to do so if the outbreak worsens in the US. Among those currently changing their behavior, 47% say they are avoiding or limiting visits to shopping centers/malls. Among respondents likely to change their behaviour if the outbreak worsens, 75% expect to avoid malls—with this type of location topping the list of those to be avoided.