Prime Day’s initial 24 hours have propelled Amazon to the top, marking the biggest U.S. e-commerce day of 2024 so far. On July 16, Adobe estimates that U.S. consumers spent $7.2 billion in online and mobile sales, setting a new daily record for this year.
The milestone coincided with the first half of Amazon’s 48-hour Prime Day event, but importantly, it also includes sales from a broad range of retailers. This $7.2 billion marks a nearly 12% increase from the first half of Prime Day 2023, which took place from July 11-12.
The surge in online sales was driven by consumer demand for electronics such as headphones, bluetooth speakers, televisions, fitness trackers, computers, and e-readers. Other popular categories included video games, small kitchen appliances, and perfume.
Back-to-school spending also showed a significant rise, with a 210% increase compared to daily levels in June. Items like backpacks and lunchboxes significantly contributed to this growth.
Adobe’s analysis covered over one trillion visits to U.S. retailers, encompassing 100 million stock keeping units (SKUs) and 18 product categories.
The report also highlighted that discounts are anticipated to remain substantial on Day 2 of the Prime Event. Consumers can look forward to markdowns across various categories, with electronics discounts at 23%, apparel at 20%, televisions at 17%, and home/furniture at 16%.
“Steep discounting has been the story of e-commerce so far this year, as consumers look to get the most value out of their dollar,” said Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights.
The report also noted a spike in buy-now-pay-later usage on the first day, showing that consumers are increasingly embracing this flexible payment method to manage their budgets amid inflation. Despite inflation, consumer spending remains strong this year, partly driven by new demand, the firm added.
The annual Prime Day event, now in full swing, has established itself as a key moment in the e-commerce industry, prompting other major retailers like Target and Walmart to launch their own discount events. Even social media giant TikTok has attempted a similar event. Nevertheless, Amazon, one of the largest companies globally by market cap, appears to be the biggest beneficiary of this Christmas-in-July sales phenomenon.