Companies that are deeply embedded in the way society is run are among the biggest companies in the world. In the United States, think of Facebook, the largest social media provider in the world, or Apple, the world leader in consumer electronics. Therefore, it is important to note when society shifts from one way of functioning to another. Which two companies are in an excellent position to benefit from current societal shifts?
Remote enterprise training
As I have mentioned previously, Docebo (TSX: DCBO) has two very strong tailwinds working in its favour. The first being that the world is slowly becoming more digital. This allows companies to streamline and automate certain processes.
Think of companies like Dye & Durham (due diligence and file creation) and Tecsys (supply chain optimization). These companies are helping companies modernize operations and make work more efficient. Docebo is an up-and-coming leader in moving training for enterprises online.
The company is also experiencing tailwinds caused by the residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, companies that primarily worked in large office spaces decided to close their buildings and have employees work from home.
Examples of companies that adopted this new work model are Facebook, Shopify, and Twitter. This shows that even the largest companies in the world were susceptible to the societal effects of the pandemic.
Because of the need for companies to shift to a work-from-home organization, platforms like those offered by Docebo will be vital. As companies continue to turn to Docebo, its stock is sure to continue rising. Since the market crash caused by the pandemic, Docebo stock has gained nearly 400%!
Grocery shopping from the comfort of your home
Another industry that may have changed forever is the retail industry. Because of the pandemic, consumers have decided to increasingly shop online. Within the retail industry, online grocery shopping has seen the largest increase in practice. This bodes well for companies like Goodfood Market (TSX: FOOD).
Goodfood is an online grocery company. It also manufactures and delivers ready-to-cook meals to subscribers. In August 2020, Goodfood reported that it had exceeded 200,000 subscribers, which makes up 40-45% of the Canadian meal kit market.
To continue increasing overall market share, Goodfood plans on offering more products including prepared meals and snack food. These segments of its business are in pilot testing and under development, respectively.
Since the COVID-19 market crash, Goodfood stock increased as much as 350% over five months! This is a huge improvement to the stock’s net decline of 21% since its initial public offering in April 2015 up until that time. As consumers continue to shop online, expect Goodfood to lead the way among online grocery and meal kit providers.
Foolish takeaway
One way to ensure that investors earn the highest return on their investments is to focus on where society is moving. Societal shifts can happen for a number of reasons. In this article, I outlined a general shift to digital paradigms in favour of efficiency and automation, and the effects of a global pandemic as catalysts for large shifts in two industries.
For these reasons, I think Docebo and Goodfood Market are interesting companies today.
