The annual battle for summer shopping is heating up. While Amazon has traditionally dominated the mid-July sales scene with Prime Day, Walmart is throwing its hat in the ring this year with its own “Walmart Deals” event, kicking off on July 8th and running through July 11th. Amazon will counter with its highly anticipated Prime Day on July 16th and 17th.
Walmart takes a shot at Prime Day
Walmart’s “Walmart Deals” event appears to be a strategic move to capture some of the shopping frenzy typically associated with Prime Day. The event, Walmart’s “largest savings event ever,” promises deals across various categories, including electronics, home goods, toys, and back-to-school essentials. Walmart+ members will also enjoy early access to these deals, starting five hours before the general public.
Prime Day goes global (almost)
Amazon’s Prime Day, a two-day event offering exclusive discounts to Prime members, remains a major shopping occasion. This year, Prime Day will take place across the US, UK, Spain, Australia, Germany, Mexico, Japan, and nearly 20 other regions worldwide. India will have its own separate sales event later this summer. “Prime Day is a celebration of the value we bring to members all year long, and features millions of deals across more than 35 product categories as well as discounts on Amazon devices, quality entertainment, groceries, travel, and more during the event,” said Jamil Ghani, vice president of Amazon Prime in a statement. “In fact, over the course of last year, Amazon customers saved nearly $24 billion from deals and coupons—with Prime members enjoying the vast majority of those savings—including over $2.5 billion during Prime Day 2023.”
Smaller brands join the fray with “Buy with Prime”
While Prime Day is known for showcasing Amazon’s own products and deals, this year, the company is partnering with select smaller brands to offer their products through the “Buy with Prime” option. This allows shoppers to purchase directly from these brands while still enjoying Prime benefits like free delivery and 24/7 customer support. PopSockets is one example of a brand participating in this program.
The company doesn’t disclose how much revenue it pulls in from such events. But it has been hosting more of them in recent years to attract consumers dealing with rising credit costs and high — but easing — inflation. According to Adobe Analytics data, last year’s Prime Day was a hit, with shoppers in the U.S. spending $12.7 billion, 6,1% more than they did in 2022.
