Despite warehouse workers’ protests and renewed calls for consumers to cancel their Prime memberships, Amazon yet again topped previous record-setting Prime Days with what it’s calling the “largest shopping event” in the company’s 25-year history.
Amazon said Prime members from 18 countries around the world snapped up more than 175 million items and saved north of $1 billion during the two-day event spanning July 15-16. Millions of orders reached customers’ doorsteps quickly via free Prime one-day and same-day shipping, and Prime Now, the two-hours-or-less delivery service.
The promise of discounts and exclusive deals lured a record number of new member signups on July 16 and slightly fewer on the previous day, Amazon noted. Small businesses selling on Amazon raked in more than $2 billion in sales, which the e-commerce giant touted as a “record-breaking success” for third-party merchants.
Amazon highlighted popular products according to country, reflecting how tastes can change according to region. Mexico was into Nintendo Switches and members in Japan ordered Happy Belly Water in droves while the Dutch loved diapers by Mama Bear and U.S. consumers grabbed Instapots and DNA kits from 23andMe and Ancestry.
However, Amazon made no mention of how fashion fared during the 48-hour event after spotlighting exclusives like a Levi’s denim deal and discounts on Crocs, J. Crew and more.
Adobe, which previously reported that Monday lifted online sales at rival billion-dollar-plus retailers 64 percent, said these mega-merchants fared even better on the second half of Prime Day, with sales climbing 72 percent over a comparable average Tuesday. But small online sellers earning $5 million of less in annual revenue weren’t so fortunate, seeing Monday’s 30 percent sales lift shrink to a 25 percent boost the following day.
Shoppers came ready to spend on Tuesday’s deals, Adobe asserted, describing the day’s traffic across online retailers as “buying focused.” July 16 also marked Amazon’s fourth $2-billion day outside of a traditional holiday shopping season, along with July 15, Memorial Day, and Labor Day of last year.
Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos offered a “huge thank you to Amazonians everywhere who made this day possible for customers.”