Large retailers including Amazon, Walmart, and Target have begun offering deep discounts on select products well in advance of Black Friday, one of the country’s biggest shopping days, reports Reuters.
In recent years, retailers have begun hosting holiday shopping events earlier in the season in order to spread out demand and boost their bottom lines. To kick off the season in early October, Walmart is holding Walmart Deals Holiday Kickoff from October 9-12, Amazon initiated Prime Big Deal Days which goes until tomorrow, and Target ran Circle Week from October 1-7.
Neil Saunders, managing director at GlobalData, noted that the retailers' use of flash sales and exclusive deals is an attempt to recreate the momentum seen in "door buster deals" that encouraged shoppers to line up outside stores to make impulse purchases on Black Fridays before the pandemic.
A KPMG survey found that inflation is still a top concern for holiday shoppers. Reuters said that this will likely lead some to take advantage of these deals to find gifts. However, they may forego these October events to fully participate in Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Full Story (Subscription Required)
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