How Did Midsummer Sales Events Fare This Year?
Some major retailers leaned into high-profile sales events in July, including Amazon, Walmart and Target Corp. Although final retail sales numbers for July won’t be available until mid-August, the promotions underscored the importance of 12-month efforts in a tight marketplace.
An industry analyst agreed that the go-big-or-go-home events are strategic. “July is not a heavy period for retail sales. A lot of people are on vacation and it’s before back-to-school is ramping up. It’s a way to get consumers excited during a lull in the shopping year,” John Harmon, managing director of technology research at New York City-based Coresight Research, told Progressive Grocer in a recent interview.
Based on early results, many consumers were indeed excited. After its 48-hour event on July 16 and 17, Amazon reported that this was the biggest Prime Day ever with record sales and unit movement.
"Prime Day 2024 was a huge success thanks to the millions of Prime members globally who turned to Amazon for fantastic deals, and our much-appreciated employees, delivery partners, and sellers around the world who helped bring the event to life for customers," said Doug Herrington, CEO of Worldwide Amazon Stores. "We love helping Prime members save money, and Prime Day is the ultimate celebration of the savings, selection, and convenience that Prime membership provides customers looking for shopping, entertainment, food delivery, and more."
While Amazon reports record results after most of its Prime Day events, such recaps indicate that the retail giant is broadening its reach. “It’s logical, because more people know about Amazon and Prime Days. The number of Prime members has been increasing and they are moving into more categories and more into grocery,” Harmon noted.
On that note, he pointed out that Amazon has been promoting more food and grocery delivery and pickup in its Prime Day push as consumers continue to be vocal about the affordability of such items. “This year, Amazon offered a $40 discount on Amazon Fresh purchases of $100 or more and also collaborated with GrubHub,” Harmon said.
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In addition to Amazon and Coresight data, other research bears out Prime Day shoppers’ move to add more groceries to their online baskets. Data and tech company Numerator reported that the average 2024 Prime Day spend was $60.03 per order, up from $56.64 last year, and of the top five items sold this year, three were household or grocery products.
Walmart’s first Walmart Deals event also aimed high in delivering value to shoppers, including discounts on groceries. Held July 8-11, the promotion was billed as its biggest savings event to date. Target, meanwhile, touted its Circle Week event on July 9 and 10, with deals for Target Circle members. “For those that jumped on the Prime Day bandwagon, why not? It gets people in the shopping mood,” observed Harmon.
If the mid-July events goosed sales during a quiet period, retailers didn’t take a big beat before launching into back-to-school promotions and online events. A spate of grocers rolled out those promotions in July and some are also out early with Halloween programs, a trend that started a few years ago. “We’ve seen ‘holiday creep’ for a long time,” said Harmon, adding that it seems to be inching back even more.
Seattle-based Amazon is No. 2 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2024 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. PG named the company as one of its Retailers of the Century. Walmart has more than 10,500 stores and numerous e-commerce websites in 19 countries. The Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer is No. 1 the PG 100. Minneapolis-based Target Corp. is No. 7 on The PG 100, with nearly 2,000 locations. PG also included the company on its Retailers of the Century list.
