Amazon Announces a Second Prime Day as the Fight for Holiday Shoppers Begins

‘Tis the season to spend more than any time of year — according to some retailers, that is.

Ecommerce giant Amazon has added another Prime Day to the calendar to kick off its holiday deals, per CNN Business, following the lead of other major retailers this year.

Amazon’s “Prime Early Access Sale” will take place October 11-12. Only Prime members are eligible to participate in the event, which will offer discounts on “hundreds of thousands” of goods.

The announcement comes after last week’s news that Target and Walmart will both be getting an early start on their holiday deals. Target’s “deal days” will be held October 6-8, with its price match program running from then until Christmas Eve, and Walmart‘s holiday return program will launch on October 1.

Retailers are hoping that a longer period of deals will encourage people to spend more money over time. “Consumers are going to start holiday shopping earlier this year as they look to spread the costs at a time when household incomes are being squeezed,” retail analyst and managing director at GlobalData Retail Neil Saunders told CNN Business.

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But inflation‘s impact on a range of everyday goods might make customers hesitant to hand over their cash. According to Deloitte, holiday retail sales will increase by just 4-6% — far short of the 15.1% growth for the same period in 2021.

Amazon’s “Prime Early Access Sale” will launch in 15 countries including Canada, China, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States.