Pointers at Glance
- Amazon mentioned that Prime members bought more than 300 million items surpassing previous years globally.
- Consumers kept much of their Amazon Prime Day shopping to essentials and smaller purchases at the peak time of inflation.
In its Amazon prime day event on Thursday, Amazon said that Prime members bought more than 300 million items exceeding other years worldwide. However, the e-retailer declined to mention the revenue of the event.
At the time of high inflation, consumers kept much of their Prime Day shopping to essentials and smaller purchases as per the numerator, which found that just 5% of the items sold for over $100, and 58% sold for under $20.
According to the Adobe Digital Economy Index, Prime Day lifted other US retailers the same as in previous years. In addition, US online expenses nearly reached $12 billion, an 8.5% increase over the last year.
Adobe mentioned by email that the stores played a role with conversion for retailers offering curbside pickup and BOPIS up 20% compared to an average day in June.
Insights
As per the latest consumer price index report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the burst of online spending during Amazon Prime Day was not quite as robust as it seems, given that inflation in the US reached 9.1% in June.
According to Natalie Kotlyar, who leads the retail industry group at consultancy BDO, consumers were planning ahead and leveraging Prime Day to check things off shopping lists beyond household essentials. This year, Amazon forged partnerships with top brands such as Apple and KitchenAid that helped draw people in.
She also said that with inflation, consumers are looking to buy products that they actually need now more than ever. Some bought essential products for back to school, and some started to purchase products for the holiday session when there were great deals precisely.
Speculation carries on whether Amazon would schedule a second Amazon Prime Day this year, something it has never done and declines to comment on. BDO’s Kotlyar believes the e-commerce giant will be content to stage a Black Friday event, with some deals offered only to Prime members, without branding it as “Prime Day.” Others are not so sure.
According to the research from Attest, consumers are pulling back their online spending and plan to spend less in the next six months. Attest CEO Jeremy King said through email, “With such uncertainty, it is little surprise that Amazon could potentially hold a second Prime event at the end of this year to maximize sales.”
