The Time of Prime

Prime Day, Amazon’s annual mega shopping event, kicked off early this morning. The two-day affair is set to feature lowered prices on some of its most popular products and devices, as well as “flash sales” that’ll pop up on its website from now through Wednesday.

• The blowout sales event, which was first launched in 2015, is back to its original July date after being pushed to different dates each of the past two years (Covid and the Olympics).

⭐️💰 Welcome to Prime time… Prime Day has grown to become more lucrative for Amazon than either Black Friday or Cyber Monday. The retail giant sold an estimated $11.2 billion worth of goods over a 48-hour period last year, good for a company record.

• Last year wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, though. Average spending fell for the third straight year to $47 per customer (from $55 in 2020).

🏷 Zoom out: Cue Christmas in July comparisons, cuz it’s the time of shop, shop, shop. Many of Amazon’s competitors are running counter-sales featuring major deals of their own, including Target, Walmart, Best Buy, Samsung, and Lowe’s.

+It’s a free-for-all out there: Prime members can enjoy a free $10 Amazon credit for purchasing at least $10 worth of products from small businesses through July 11. A three-month free trial of Audible Premium Plus and four months of free Amazon Music Unlimited (with three months free for non-Prime members) is also included.