CI&T’s global director of retail strategy, Melissa Minkow, noted, “Prime Day has become an exception moment where shoppers give themselves permission to go all out because it is marketed so well as a useful saving event.” This year, Amazon extended its Prime Day period to run for four days, from July 8-11, marking the company’s longest sale yet. In 2024, Adobe Analytics estimated that Amazon hit a record US$14.2 billion in sales during the 48-hour shopping event, marking an 11 per cent increase year-over-year. This year, Adobe estimated that Amazon’s extended Prime Day deals will drive US$23.8 billion in spending, a 28.4 per cent increase compared to the year prior. “This is equivalent to two Black Fridays, which drove US$10.8 billion in online spend during the 2024 holiday shopping season,” stated an Adobe spokesperson.  However, Amazon won’t be the only retailer to take advantage of this alternative “Black Friday” shopping season.  How Amazon’s Prime Day impacts other big-box retailers  As GlobalData’s MD, Neil Saunders, told Inside Retail, “Prime Day is now a key date in the retail calendar and is seen positively by a lot of consumers who use it to snag bargains and deals.”  Not to be left behind, retailers like Best Buy and Target have created rival events, such as Best Buy’s Black Friday in July and Target Circle Week, to capture the eyes, and wallets, of consumers who are already in a shopping frenzy thanks to Amazon’s Prime Day.  In fact, data collected by Similarweb, a global software development company specialising in web analytics, showed that 53.4 per cent of consumers planned to browse retailers other than Amazon during Prime Day.  Additionally, a survey conducted by Numerator, a data and technology company specialising in consumer insights and market intelligence, revealed that in 2024, 35 per cent of Prime members also shopped during Target Circle Week, 35 per cent shopped the Walmart Deals event and 12 per cent shopped Best Buy’s Black Friday in July. This year, big-box retailers aren’t just creating Prime Day-adjacent events; they are determined to match Amazon’s pace, beat for beat.  How Amazon’s Prime Day extension affects other retailers Saunders observed that “a lot of retailers have extended their discount periods to match Amazon.”  Similar to how Amazon extended its Prime Day deals from two to four days, legacy competitors like Walmart and even newer ones like TikTok Shop have lengthened their sales events — from four to six days and from nine to 13 days, respectively.  However, as Daniel Reid, senior insights analyst at Similarweb, commented, “Just adding more days of discounts isn’t enough to stay competitive. In today’s price-sensitive environment, retailers also need to bring a differentiated and credible value proposition, something shoppers can’t get elsewhere.” Similarly, Saunders pointed out, “Many [retailers], like Target, will drop different deals each day to keep things fresh and keep consumers checking in to see what’s new.” Compared to this time last year, these retailers are offering new promotions to entice consumers this month, including: Target is giving Target Circle 360 members access to Circle Week deals 24 hours early. TikTok Shop is offering cash back to customers who watch Deals For You Days livestreams, if they find a featured product for a lower price somewhere else.  Walmart is holding its Deals event in person and online for the first time after having previously limited the event to its website and app.  While it’s unlikely that any of these big-box retailers will be able to achieve similar sales numbers as Prime Day, it’s clear they need to keep finding new ways to grab consumers’ attention during this active shopping period.