Thanks for Visiting!

Register for free to get the full story.

Sign Up
Already have a Placer.ai account? Log In

Prime Day 2021 - Offline Impact

by 
Ethan Chernofsky
 on 
June 28, 2021
Prime Day 2021 - Offline Impact

Prime Day had yet another huge year in 2021, but while the eCommerce success is almost a given, the offline effects were certainly in question this year. In recent years, Amazon’s Prime Day has had a significant impact on offline retail, with competitors like Best Buy, Walmart and Target driving strong results in July 2019 and even seeing a bump in October 2020

We dove into these competitors, Whole Foods, and even Amazon warehouses to see how 2021’s Prime Day impact was felt in physical retail.

The Benefits Continue

In recent years, key offline Amazon competitors like Target, Best Buy and Walmart have all gotten into the Prime Day mix. And while Prime Day 2020’s offline impact was expectedly limited by the pandemic, a boost was still seen. In 2021, however, it looks like the strategy paid real dividends. Walmart, Target and Best Buy saw visits up 21.7%, 32.3% and 10.3% respectively when compared to 2020’s October Prime Day iteration. Even when comparing to the July affair in 2019, visits were down only 0.1% and 1.2% for Walmart and Best Buy, while Target actually saw an impressive 12.1% jump. 

But perhaps the comparison to the equivalent days in previous years is more relevant than the comparison to previous Prime Days. All three brands not only (expectedly) saw huge jumps compared to the equivalent Monday and Tuesday in June 2020, but also saw significant visit growth when compared to the equivalent days in June 2019. Walmart saw visits up 1.3% compared to the equivalent Monday and Tuesday in 2019, while Target and Best Buy saw increases of 18.2% and 11.3%, respectively. 

Critically, these are bumps on random weekdays driven by a retail ‘holiday’ created by a competitor. The success will likely only deepen the approach, pushing more brands to take part and driving top players like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy to look even more broadly at how they leverage Prime Day and other seemingly disconnected retail ‘holidays’.

The Amazon Effect

Yet, the most important offline player in Prime Day is still Amazon. Looking at visits to Whole Foods on Prime Day compared to the ‘holiday’ in 2019 and 2020 saw the grocery brand’s visits up 19.7% year over year, but still down 17.9% when compared to 2019. Some of this centers around the ongoing challenges that Whole Foods has faced in the pandemic environment. But the brand may not have been utilized as effectively as during past Prime Days, with deals like the infamous $10-for-$10 not on the agenda this year.

The brand was experiencing a more organic recovery with visits down 9.0% the week beginning June 14th when compared to the equivalent week in 2019 -  the grocer’s best showing since the start of 2021.

An equally important piece of the Amazon puzzle can be gleaned when looking at visits to key distribution centers. Visits to Amazon centers were down year over year, but up 32.4% when compared to 2019 and 13.7% when compared to the prior three Mondays and Tuesdays. 

And this could be the best sign of all for Amazon. After seeing eCommerce skyrocket with the onset of the pandemic, Amazon was unable to effectively handle the increased demand. While it’s easy to understand its inability to predict a global pandemic, the company clearly shifted priorities to make sure it was well positioned to account for future surges. The decline from last year speaks also to the October Prime Day date in 2020 that more closely coincided with the holiday season, and a greater degree of readiness by Amazon to handle the bump. Visits to distribution centers were up 13.7% compared to the previous three Mondays and Tuesdays - showing Amazon’s ability to effectively adapt operational resources to account for demand peaks.

Will Prime Day’s wider effects bring more brands into the mix? Will the event drive an ongoing boost to Amazon entities and competitors alike? Visit Placer.ai to find out.

Get 3 brand & industry
breakdowns every week

Subscribe to the newsletter

Great! Prepare your inbox for data-driven insights...
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Get a Demo

Please enter your first name
Please enter your last name
Please provide a valid email
Please enter your email
Please enter company name

Thanks for reaching out!

One of our experts will be in touch soon

Try Placer.ai Free
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Small Coffee Chains Brewing Big Success
Placer.ai White Paper Recap – November 2023
Thanksgiving Travel 2023 Recap
Checking in With Nike and Lululemon
Black Friday 2023 Retail Recap
Starbucks’ 2023 Holiday Menu & Red Cup Day Performance
Turkey Wednesday 2023
Who Attended the 2023 Pickleball Championship? 
Three Surprising Holiday Shopping Trends
What’s in Store for Ulta Beauty This Holiday Season?
Best Buy and Department Stores: A Holiday Deep Dive
Discount & Dollar Stores: Strength Toward The End of the Year
The State of Off-Price Retail: Discounts Seal The Deal
Placer Mall Index Recap: October 2023
Placer.ai Office Index: October 2023 Recap
Retail Corridors Ahead of the 2023 Holiday Season
California, Here Gap Comes
Checking in With Home Improvement
Getting Into the Glasses Game: Warby Parker Takes Over
Fitness Positioned for a Strong 2023 Finish
White Paper Recap: October 2023
Coffee Giants Brewing Up Business
Popeyes and Burger King Lead the Way
Diving into Yum!
Looking Ahead to Black Friday 2023
Blockbusters Drive Movie Theater Comeback
Crocs and Boot Barn: Shoe-Ins for Success
McDonald’s and Chipotle's Winning Recipe
The State Of Steak: Checking in With Texas Roadhouse
Pleasant Pastimes: Pickleball Potential Proves Potent
Who’s Driving Downtown Manhattan’s Weekend Revival?
Diving into Downtown Manhattan Foot Traffic Trends
Rite Aid: Rightsizing Right
Major League Soccer: Its Die-Hard and Casual Fans
The Anchor Recap: September 2023
Placer.ai Office Index: September 2023 Recap
Placer Mall Index Recap: September 2023
September White Paper Recap
The Consumer Habits of College Students
JCPenney: Rightsizing and Revitalizing
Pent-Up Demand Ahead of October Sales Events
4 Strategies Retailers are Using to Drive Traffic to Their Venues
5 Key Regional Grocery Players Impressing in 2023
Upscale Kitchenware Trending Up
Costco Finds More Room for Growth
Four C-Store Chains Making an A-Grade
National Parks + Outdoor Summer Activities
Diving Into Darden: Summer 2023 Update
The Summer Event Effect
Messi: Massive in Miami
Looking Back on Back to School 2023
The Anchor Recap: August 2023
Placer.ai Office Index: August 2023 Recap
Placer.ai Mall Index: August 2023 Recap
Placer.ai White Paper Recap: August 2023
Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte Strikes Again
Big Scoop: We All Scream For Ice Cream
Sports Away: Lululemon & Nike’s Momentum Continues
Summer Visits Heat Up For Recreation and Outdoor Gear Chains
No CSS overwrite - July 2023 Office Index Recap
Staging - August 2023 Mall Indec
Mid-Atlantic Grocery Deep Dive
Experiential Chains Heating Up This Summer
Petco Goes Big by Going Small
Ulta Beauty: Leading the Discretionary Pack
Discount and Dollar Chains Continue to Thrive
Summer of Sports: DICK’s Sporting Goods and Hibbett Sports
Off-Price: Succeeding Into Summer
The Anchor Recap: July 2023
Superstores Maintaining Pandemic Gains Amidst Economic Headwinds
2023: Home Improvement at the Halfway Point
July 2023 Office Index Recap
Placer.ai Mall Index: July 2023 Recap
The Taylor Swift Visit Lift
Southwestern Grocery Dive
July 2023 White Paper Recap: Halfway Point Review & Quarterly Index
Yum! Brands: Driving Dining Visits
Slurpees and Summer Movies Stimulate Consumer Foot Traffic
Cool Beans: Summer Coffee Update
Checking In on Back to School 2023
Crocs and New Balance Tip The Scales
Burger Bliss: Shake Shack and In-N-Out Stacking Visits
Chipotle & McDonald's Continue to Reign Supreme
Vibenomics and Placer.ai Partner to Enhance Retail Media In-Store Measurement
California Grocers Here We Come!
Marriott’s Different Audiences
Bonchon and Kura Sushi Thrive in the Fast-Casual Scene
A Shoe In: Footwear Climbs to the Top
Cheers! Raising a Glass to Beverage Retail
Placer.ai Office Index: June 2023 Recap
Placer.ai Mall Index June 2023 Recap – A Turn of the Tide and a Dive into Open-Air Lifestyle Centers
Local Kitchens: Redefining the Restaurant
Unlocking Urban Insights: The Value in Manhattan’s Employees
Ohio State Parks On The Rise
How is Inflation Impacting the High-Income Shoppers?
Five Fast-Growing Dining Chains
What To Expect From Prime Day and July Sales Events in 2023
The State Of Fashion: How Are Apparel Retailers Faring in 2023?
2023’s Latest Dining Success Story: GEN Korean BBQ House
The NBA Finals: A Location Intelligence Perspective