For many people, the end of February will mark close to a full year of working from home. And while many offices will remain at least partially remote for the next few months, others will have already begun the slow transition to in-person work. 

So what exactly will in-person work look like after the pandemic? Which Covid adaptations will remain with us in the long run and which will become stories with which to bore our descendants and betray our age? 

And, most importantly, what products or supplies will help support the transition back to in-person work?

You might need a crystal ball to get to 100% on this, but educated guesses can get you close. 

Particularly in the short term, we have a pretty good sense of how office life and culture might change, and anticipating these needs will allow you to help ease the transition from work-from-home to work-from-work. 

Here’s what we expect to see.

No Contact 

It’s one thing to trust science—but it’s another thing entirely to abandon a year’s worth of mental conditioning at the flip of a switch. Even post-vaccine, we can expect to feel a bit of jumpiness in confined spaces with others. 

One way to mitigate anxiety is to minimize inessential contact. Consider giving contact-free keychains that allow users to open doors and operate community technology (like ATMs or communal phones) without using their hands.

We can also expect a bit less communal dining (and fewer lunches out), at least in the first part of the year. Gifts that help employees and clients stay hydrated and powered up include:

• Insulated thermoses

• Water bottles

• Bento box sets

• To-go mugs

These products make it easy to bring food and drink from home, helping make sure that everybody stays caffeinated and peppy until gathering around the coffee maker feels natural again. 

Clean Machine

Expect sterilization to be all the rage for at least the next few years. Investing in office appliances that use UV light technology to sterilize while they charge (or UV lasers that employees can use to zap door handles, keyboards, and armrests) can help calm the jitters—and imagine the positive associations built with your brand when somebody catches a glimpse of your logo just as they pull the trigger on a pesky virus. 

And hey—even when COVID-19 is eventually subdued, the flu and the common cold result in a major loss of productivity every year (while also being an all-around bonafide drag). 

Keeping your community healthy is a great way to demonstrate caring while also cutting down on sick days required.

Comfy Cozy

Transitions are hard. Buttons on pants can be hard. 

While you likely won’t transition your office attire to the level of casual-not-cool that many of us adopted during the pandemic, you can ease the transition back to professional attire by outfitting your physical workplace with a few comfort items.

These might include fleeces, slippers, or hoodies in your brand colors. Employees can look spiffy and on-brand while also retaining a few of the comforts that made the last year manageable.

Don Your Mask

After the 2002 SARS outbreak, mask wearing became increasingly common in Asian countries—and it may persist in US culture long after COVID is gone. In any case, wearing tightly woven cotton masks has provided at least a modicum of physical safety and mental security for the last year, and continuing to make masks available whenever physical distancing is impossible adds an extra layer of comfort, even for a vaccinated population. 

Consider making masks in your brand colors (and bearing your logo) easily accessible for employees and clients. It's a simple way to show the members of your community that you care about their physical health and peace of mind.

Looking Ahead

We’ve always known that the coronavirus pandemic wouldn’t last forever, and with high-risk individuals and frontline workers already beginning to receive vaccines, it’s finally possible to imagine a slow return to the old normal (or something like it). 

None of these changes will be immediate, however, and the psychological effects of the pandemic will be with us for at least the next few years. 

To position your company for a successful transition, anticipate your employees’ and customers’ needs and fears—and be ready to mitigate them. It’s a simple way to show your support and let the healing begin.