Numerator: Amazon’s pre-holiday sale indicates cautious spending

Amazon Prime Big Deal Days sales held Oct. 10-11 did not match Amazon Prime Day in July but it did outperform the company’s other previous sales promotions. according to data from Numerator

Numerator analyzed 73,342 orders placed on Amazon during the October sale and found 31,607 unique buyers who purchased 137,111 items. Numerator said the average order size was $53.47, up from $46.68 during the same event last year. The average order size for the recent sale was about 1% less than the $54.05 during the July event. Average household spend for the recent event was roughly $124.09,  20% less than the average household spend of $155.67 during Prime Day in July.

“Big Deal Days was Amazon’s most successful fall sale to date, and second-most-successful sale overall behind 2023’s blockbuster summer Prime Day,” said Amanda Schoenbauer, Numerator analyst. “Staple items like batteries and groceries moved the most volume, while Apple products like AirPods Pro, iPads and Apple Watches generated the most revenue.”

Consumers shopping the Big Deal Days sales event mostly looked for items they use or consume daily. The top-selling items during the two-day event were Premier Protein Shakes, Amazon-branded batteries and Amazon FireTV Sticks. The company said 60% of the items sold for under $20, while just 4% sold for over $100. The average spent for items sold was $27.90.

Numerator also found about half of the Amazon shoppers said they purchased something they had been waiting to buy on sale. The survey also found that 85% of shoppers said they made purchases because the items they wanted were on sale.

The typical Prime Big Deal Days shopper observed by Numerator was a high-income suburban female aged 35 to 44. The report found that 72% said they also shopped on Prime Day in July.

Numerator said 55% of consumers are comparing prices and being more cautious with every spend. Most of the items sold were for personal use and not to be given as gifts, which may dispel the myth that early sales events pull forward holiday gift sales.

Numerator said 30% of the Amazon shoppers either expected or had already shopped at similar sales events at Target and Walmart. Schoenbauer said consumers are looking for deals this holiday season as 60% expect to shop on Black Friday and 57% said they will shop on Cyber Monday.