Michael Crider
Though there’s hope on the horizon, the COVID-19 pandemic isn’t going away anytime soon, especially in the US. Reports that Amazon had postponed its annual consumer bacchanalia of deals, Prime Day, floated way back in May. Now that July is fast coming to a close, Amazon is making it official: Prime Day won’t be happening this month.
A spokesman for the company told TechCrunch that “this year we’ll be holding Prime Day later than usual, while ensuring the safety of our employees and supporting our customers and selling partners.” Exactly when it will occur (if it does) wasn’t mentioned; tentative dates of August, September, and October have been floated by the press this summer. Oddly, Amazon said that it would hold a regional Prime Day for the Indian market from August 6-7th.
Amazon has been reporting record sales since the start of the pandemic, as millions of people transition to working from home and avoid conventional retailers. The company has had to prioritize basic necessities and other safety equipment, but seems to have transitioned to mostly normal operations, barring shortages of some high-demand items like webcams and home exercise equipment.
Prime Day has been regarded as something of a Christmas in July for online shoppers, an alternative Amazon-branded version of Black Friday. But the last few years have been disappointing, filled with tons of deals that are barely discounts. Between consumers tightening their financial belts, and more important things on their minds (not to mention the millions of people unemployed or furloughed since the start of the pandemic), I think Amazon could cancel Prime Day for 2020 without too many tears being shed.
Source: TechCrunch
