How Did Amazon’s Latest Prime Event Fare With Shoppers?
Amazon just went out big with its Prime Early Access event, and the e-retailer and observers are already gauging its performance.
The retail giant reported that best sellers from the Oct. 11-12 online shopping sale included electronics like the Macbook AirM1, Bose earbuds and Amazon devices, along with household essentials such as Casper pillows, vacuums and air purifiers. Among popular health and beauty items: Crest 3D Whitestrips Professional Effects Teeth Whitening Strips and Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides. On a macro level, top-performing categories were apparel, home, toys and Amazon devices.
["Read more: "Is Grocery Poised to Gain More E-Comm Share This Holiday Season?"]
Amazon’s selling partners also fared well, the company reported. Prime members bought more than 100 million items from partners that are typically small- and medium-sized business.
“Our Prime Early Access Sale was a great kickoff to the holidays, and the best part is that it’s only the beginning. Customers will find millions of must-have deals throughout the season that will help them continue to save money on gifts for loved ones,” declared Doug Herrington, CEO of Amazon Worldwide Stores.
Outside of Amazon’s own take, researchers at NielsenIQ tracked the results of the sale's first day. According to those findings, more than half (52%) of consumers reported that the discounts they found on the first day of the Prime Early Access sale were better than Amazon’s other Prime event in July. A majority of shoppers reported they spent under $200 and opted for discounted items that seemed like good deals to them.
“This second deal day push from Amazon is fueling an early holiday shopping season that is very different from years past. This year’s rush is less about the fear of whether gifts will be available on shelves due to supply chain issues and more about the affordability of all things holiday and beyond,” remarked Genevieve Aronson, NielsenIQ’s global head of thought leadership. “As high inflation lingers and cost of goods continues to rise, U.S. consumers are leaning into discounts and deals to get through this year’s holiday season.”
Despite the buzz about early holiday shopping, NielsenIQ’s insights indicate that this event wasn’t quite akin to Black Friday and was more of a broader sales promotion that encompassed everyday shopping as well as early gift purchases. The research firm shared that 50% of consumers shopped the Prime blitz to find holiday deals, while 44% were looking for items for themselves.
Digging deeper into the biggest movers, NielsenIQ found that hair care topped the list of everyday essentials purchased during the latest Amazon Prime Early Access sales, followed in descending order by vitamins/supplements, pet food/pet care products, home cleaning supplies, Halloween candy, cosmetics, hand/body lotion and soap, oral care, laundry care and salty snacks.
Seattle-based Amazon is No. 2 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2022 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
