An Amazon delivery worker pulls a delivery cart full of packages during its annual Prime Day promotion in New York City, June 21, 2021.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Amazon’s big annual sale, Prime Day, will return on July 12 and 13, the company announced Thursday.
The event is also a big revenue driver for other retail sites, which often offer competing discounts to consumers. Target announced its rival Deal Days later on Thursday, to take place on July 11 through July 13.
Last year, total e-commerce sales during the two-day shopping event topped $11 billion, according to Adobe Analytics. That figure was even slightly higher than Cyber Monday totals in 2020, though that represents a 24-hour period rather than a 48-hour one.
Amazon’s sale starts at 3 a.m. Eastern Time on July 12 and runs for 48 hours in several countries, including Poland and Sweden for the first time. It will host the event for other countries like India, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, later in the summer.
Amazon said more third-party sellers will participate this year. Some sellers told CNBC last year they saw the event as an opportunity to raise brand awareness even if they didn’t cut prices, sometimes due to already high consumer spending or supply chain issues. Amazon’s announcement of Prime Day results in 2021 was relatively muted in tone compared with previous years.
Prime members will have access to early deals beginning on June 21, including up to 55% on some Amazon devices like the second-generation Echo Show 5, Kindle Paperwhite and eero mesh Wi-Fi routers.
Fire TV smart TVs will start at $89.99, a 47% savings.
Members can also save 20% on some items at Amazon Fresh stores in the U.S. beginning on June 29. Amazon said this benefit will be available year-round to Prime members paying with the Amazon app or a card registered to their account.
Amazon will also hold a sweepstakes for prizes including Super Bowl tickets, a cast meet and greet for Prime Video’s new “Lord of the Rings” series and Amazon gift cards. Every dollar spent on eligible small business products between June 21 and July 11 will give customers the chance to win the prizes.
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