‘It was quite overwhelming’: how it feels to have your business thrive in a pandemic

From virtual puppy school to home bubble-tea subscriptions, lockdowns in Australia have created unlikely winners, but victory as an outlier is sometimes bittersweet

It's no secret that on the work front, the Covid narrative has predominantly been a negative one, with two-thirds of Australian businesses reporting a hit to revenue in 2020 and underemployment hitting a historic high of 13.8%, impacting 1.8 million people.

Despite this, lockdowns have brought growth to certain sectors, with Australians spending big in areas such as beauty, hobbies and home furnishings. This increased desire for little luxuries is sometimes called the lipstick index. So what does it feel like to be an outlier in a downturn? We asked four business owners to share their experiences.