McKinsey & Company has conducted research that identified distinct Australian consumer segments as emerging out of the COVID-19 crisis, while also revealing a strong intent to pull back spending from “almost all” types of consumers.

Titled Australia’s next normal: The cautious consumer, the analysis found that price consciousness is on the rise in Australia, with just-in-time consumption to be depressed for some time.

In addition, McKinsey & Company expects spending capacity to continually be “radically and unpredictably affected as government support is progressively wound back”.

Far from a passing phenomenon, the cautious consumer is “here to stay”, according to McKinsey & Company leader consumer packaged goods and retail practices Australia and New Zealand, Jenny Child.

“Concern over the health of our finances is having an impact on sentiment, which will deepen and broaden over the rest of the year, as lagging economic effects from lockdown impact more individuals and households,” she said.

Since April, six in 10 Australians (approximately 60 per cent) of individuals surveyed in McKinsey’s consumer insight surveys reported being “very” or “extremely concerned” about the economy.

It has maintained its status as the top concern ever since.

According to Ms Child, it’s because Australians are realising that battling COVID-19 “will be a marathon not a sprint”.

“Longstanding recession behaviours such as frugality, reuse and shifts to promotional hunting and discount channel shopping are on the rise,” the leader observed.