Amazon Reports Prime Day Sets Sales Record
Amazon.com said this morning that this year's Prime Day was its biggest shopping event ever, topping last year's sales. Fortune reports that despite the slew of technical difficulties that plagued Prime Day early on, Amazon said Tuesday that sales in the first 10 hours grew at a faster pace than during the same period of 2017's event. In addition, Feedvisor reported shoppers spent 54 percent more in the first three hours of this year's Prime Day (3 p.m. to 6 p.m. EST) than in the first three hours of last year's event. Furthermore, Amazon Prime members purchased more than 100 million products Monday and Tuesday during the 36-hour sales extravaganza, making it the largest sales day in the company's history.
Total Retail's Take: I think one of the key stories here isn't how much Amazon sold, but the ripple effect Prime Day has had on other retailers such as Target, Walmart, and others. Many retailers are looking to capitalize on the increased consumer interest and online traffic that Prime Day has created by hosting their own special sales events. For example, Target reported that yesterday was its biggest online shopping day this year. The self-made retail holiday, created to celebrate Amazon's 20th anniversary, has now become an annual tradition that rivals Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Edison Trends reports July 16 (the start of Prime Day) generated roughly as many orders as Nov. 27 (Cyber Monday 2017). Twenty-three percent of all products sold on Prime Day were electronics, compared to 11 percent of the average of the previous 30 days. But perhaps Amazon's biggest gain from Prime Day? The company reported that this past Monday, the start of the Prime Day sale, saw more Prime sign-ups than any other day in the company's history.
