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The Apple Mobility index, published from January 13, 2020 to April 13, 2022, tracked the relative volume of map direction requests for various cities, regions and countries as people were driving, walking or taking public transportation to places.
As the US went into a lockdown in early 2020, key retail segments suffered tremendously, but with many recovering and accelerating their performance thanks to stimulus checks and the pent-up need for consumers to be out & about again.
We created the below Tableau Public dashboard to quickly illustrate the relationship between our mobility trends over the last couple of years and monthly sales for key Retail segments. Unsurprisingly, the Grocery industry was largely unaffected, followed by Beer & Liquor stores. However, segments like Auto Parts and Tire Retailers recovered in a very positive way starting the 2nd half of 2020, thanks to increased driving and government stimulus checks.
While Apple discontinued publishing this mobility index dataset last month, I highly encourage you to take advantage of similar public data sources to augment your own Demand Forecasting algorithms, Revenue Projections and Planning processes.
Enjoy playing with this and reach out with any questions or comments!
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Frequently asked questions about mobility and retail sales
What was the Apple Mobility index?
The Apple Mobility index tracked the relative volume of map direction requests for cities, regions, and countries as people drove, walked, or took public transportation. Apple published it from January 13, 2020 to April 13, 2022, so it captured how much Americans were moving around through the lockdown of early 2020 and the recovery that followed.
How did the 2020 lockdown affect US retail sales?
When the US went into lockdown in early 2020, key retail segments suffered tremendously. Many then recovered and even accelerated, helped by stimulus checks and consumers’ pent-up need to get out and about again. Revology built a Tableau Public dashboard that illustrates the relationship between mobility trends over those years and monthly sales for key retail segments.
Which retail segments held up best when mobility fell?
Grocery was largely unaffected, followed by beer and liquor stores. Auto parts and tire retailers took a different path and recovered in a very positive way from the second half of 2020, thanks to increased driving and government stimulus checks.
How can public mobility data improve demand forecasting?
Mobility shaped how key retail segments performed from 2020 to 2022, so movement data is a useful outside signal. Although Apple has stopped publishing its mobility index, similar public data sources can augment your own demand forecasting algorithms, revenue projections, and planning processes.
Related Reading
- Optimizing Profit Margins for Auto Service, Repair & Tire Retailers: Tactics for Smart Pricing and Revenue Growth Management
- Promotion Analytics: Why 50% of Companies Are Falling Behind and How to Catch Up
For broader industry perspective on pricing analytics and revenue growth management, see McKinsey’s Growth, Marketing & Sales insights.
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