A second Prime sale shows Amazon is nervous about the economy too
LA TimesDubbed Prime Early Access Sale, the promotion is similar to Prime Day that is held in July. E-commerce giant Amazon announced plans Monday for “a new two-day global shopping event” exclusive to members of its Prime loyalty program. “It is absolutely good news for consumers,” said Mark Mathews, vice president for research, development and industry analysis for the National Retail Federation, a trade group for the nation’s retailers. “Now all of a sudden we are almost back to pre-pandemic times when you have too much of this, too much of that so you have to discount.” Amazon’s bonus sales event may be a sign that retailers are concerned that Americans will keep a tight grip on their wallets this holiday season because of fears over inflation, rising interest rates and predictions of an oncoming recession. Walmart recently announced plans to expand its window for returning holiday sales items, scheduled from Oct. 1 to Jan. 31, compared with last year’s return window of Nov. 1 to Jan. 24.