Amazon plans to hold a second shopping event for Prime members similar to Prime Day, and the event will take place in the fourth quarter, the first time the company has held two such events in the same year.
It comes as Amazon gears up to host its Prime Day event on July 12 and 13, an annual big selling talk designed to attract new subscribers.
The new sales batch is called the Fall Prime Deal event, according to the company’s letters to sellers. The company recently began notifying select external merchants of the event via its internal seller portal, Seller Central.
One message said Amazon is asking sellers to offer special promotional deals for the event, called Lightning Deals, by July 22.
The deadline for another letter was September 2nd. For those using Amazon Fulfillment, they must ship their products by September 12th.
The exact date of the event remains unclear. But invited sellers say it looks like it’s scheduled for October. The notice directs sellers to offer fast, limited-time deals by July 22, well before the fourth-quarter event.
The notice also states that the Fall Prime deal event is an exclusive Prime member shopping event coming in the fourth quarter.
Participating sellers are required to offer a discount of at least 20% off their current prices to join the Fall Prime Deal event.
One message said that all promotions must match or exceed the lowest price since January 1, 2022. All products must have a rating of 3 stars or higher.
A new sales event in the fall could provide Amazon with a much-needed boost in sales as the company grapples with weak customer demand after a two-year explosion of growth driven by the pandemic.
Amazon wants to increase sales and attract new members
The company’s April sales posted the slowest quarterly revenue growth since the dotcom crash in 2001.
Additional products sold during the event may also help the company use empty warehouse space after overestimating demand and building too many storage facilities.
The event can also help retailers unload some of the extra inventory they have accumulated as inflation pressures shoppers and shifts their spending to areas such as travel and entertainment.
This event is separate from the Prime Day event which takes place in July this year. But both events are expected to feature high sales of TVs, sneakers and other items, according to invited sellers.
Analysts expressed concerns that the Prime Day event may have lost some of the momentum it once enjoyed. They cited slower sales growth, smaller order sizes and more silent promotion on Amazon.
Analysts expected the Prime Day event to contribute $8.1 billion to the total volume of merchandise this year, which is consistent with last year’s summer event.
Amazon has increasingly looked beyond Prime Day to entice shoppers, launching deals focused on specific categories.
Last October, the company held its first event in the field of beauty products. This was done with the aim of attracting customers before the holiday shopping season.
