Prime Day Gives Retail a Boost
It wasn’t quite Black Friday in July, but Amazon’s Prime Day did provide a boost to other retailers. Like a late-afternoon caffeine injection, the much-hyped day got consumers excited enough about shopping to increase traffic at most other retail sites.
By early afternoon on Prime Day, also known as Tuesday, July 12, a selection of retail sites including Target, Best Buy, Macy’s and Walmart saw three times more traffic, on average, than a typical Tuesday, according to tracking company HookLogic, though traffic and spending had yet to skyrocket.
Such retailers have been running a series of discounts and promotions in recent days, hoping to capitalize on some of the ecommerce mania surrounding Amazon. Macy’s offered Black Friday in July specials with an assortment of over 31,000 items on sale, while Lord & Taylor and JC Penney doled out 25% discounts. Walmart has been offering free trials for its new Shipping Pass membership, which competes directly with Prime.
