Key Takeaways
- Americans spent $24.1 billion online with various retailers during Prime Day, Adobe said, with many buying appliances and other expensive items.
- Amazon stretched its promotion to four days and said the new format resulted in “record” sales.
- Shoppers snagged backpacks and calculators, underscoring how many have started back-to-school shopping in June and July, Adobe said.
Consumers spent $24.1 billion online during Prime Day, according to new data, which Amazon said fueled a record-setting promotional period for the company.
Shoppers took advantage of Amazon’s (AMZN) semi-annual sale, which this year ran from Tuesday to late Friday, to snag appliances and other pricey items, Adobe said. Target (TGT), Walmart (WMT), Best Buy (BBY) and other major retailers have started to stage sales around Prime Day, and those promotions helped more than double the $10.8 billion in online sales merchants did last Black Friday, Adobe said.
Retailers have described consumers as reluctant to make big purchases, but the sale managed to reverse some of that hesitancy, Adobe said. “Strong discounts during the Prime Day event drove many shoppers to ‘trade up’ to higher-ticket items,” its analysis said. Home security orders increased 185% compared to average daily sales in June, while refrigerator and freezer purchases jumped 160% and washer and dryer sales rose 125%, the report said.
Technology and car seat sales were also up more than 100%, Adobe said.
Record Sales and More Items Sold, Amazon Says
This was the first time Amazon stretched its summer Prime event from two to four days. Sales were down 35% the first two days compared to Prime Day last year, but consumers moved from browsing to buying as the end of the event approached, according to Momentum Commerce, which assists with online sales for companies like Crocs and Clorox.
Ultimately, the new, four-day format paid off, Amazon said. “This year’s Prime Day event was bigger than any previous four-day period that included a Prime Day event, with record sales and more items sold,” the company wrote in a press release.
Amazon discounted fewer items this year—14% versus 38% of products—but tended to offer more significant savings on discounted goods, according to Impact Analytics, an analysis and consulting firm.
Consumers now view July promotions as part of the back-to-school shopping cycle, Adobe said. Backpack, lunchbox, calculator and kids’ clothing sales were up 175% during Prime Day compared to their average daily sales in June, Adobe said.
This article has been updated since it was first published to add further data.