Exclusive: Amazon Prime Day UK sales top £2bn despite consumer caution
Amazon’s biggest UK shopping event on record has delivered a much needed adrenaline shot to Britain’s faltering retail sector – with online spending during its four-day Prime event topping £2bn for the first time.
Consumers splashed out £2.08bn online between the 8th and the 11th July, driven by steep discounts on everything from baby toys to smart home gear, according to data revealed exclusively to CityAM.
The spree, driven by Amazon’s first ever four-day ‘Prime Day’ event, marked an 11.1 per cent increase on last year and nearly double the money spent during Black Friday 2024, according to Adobe Digital Insights.
The opening day of the sale saw a record £676.5m in online spend, making it the UK’s biggest e-commerce day of the year so far.
But beneath the surface of this spike, cracks remain in the consumer economy. Analysts and retailers alike are hoping the spike marks a turning point in what’s been a sluggish year for online shopping.
“There’s little doubt that both shoppers and sellers are set to gain from the midsummer madness of Prime Day”, said David Jinks, head of consumer research at Parcelhero. “The thinking is that a strong event now might help to offset a bumpy second half of the year”.
Retailers relying on discounts
After months of weak demand, high interest rates, and stubborn inflation, this year’s Prime event landed at the right time.
Online sales in the UK grew just 1.6 per cent in the first half of this year, Adobe said – a far cry from the exponential pandemic-era growth many retailers built their models around.
Discounts during Prime Day averaged 14 per cent, with apparel and electronics down 18 per cent, and home and garden items down just 15 per cent.
That price-cutting drove category booms in computer and smart home items sales.
“The success of the Prime event shows that UK consumers are still quite price-sensitive”, said Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights. “Eventised shopping moments with competitive discounts continue to hold strength in unlocking strong levels of growth2.
But this strategy comes at a cost – especially for smaller sellers. As consumers chase lower prices, independent retailers are struggling to keep up with Amazon’s margin-squeezing tactics.
Low confidence, inflation and high interest rates have discouraged spending; demand for discounted items has driven sales for nearly a year straight.
Shoppers trade loyalty for security
The surge in Prime spend also comes as loyalty programmes see renewed interest from anxious consumers.
A recent LoyaltyLion study of 2,000 UK shoppers found 64 per cent are more likely to join loyalty programmes during economic uncertainty, with that figure rising to 72 per cent among millennials.
“In uncertain times, shoppers are looking for value and security”, said Charlie Casey, chief executive of LoyaltyLion.
Amazon Prime itself – the loyalty scheme at the heart of the retail giant’s flywheel – has now got over 200 million global members paying an annual fee for fast shipping and various deals.
In the US alone, membership rose nine per cent year on year by March.
A strong start, but slow global momentum
While UK sales soared, early data from across the pond showed another side on the picture.
In the first four hours of this year’s event, Amazon.com saw sales fall nearly 14 per cent compared to 2024, according to Momentum Commerce, which manages over $7bn (£5.19bn) in Amazon marketplace sales.
Analysts caution that with the event now stretched to four days instead of two, comparisons are tricky.
Some shoppers may be holding off for better deals later in the week, particularly amid wider concerns about tariffs, inflation and global slowdown.
“This year’s four-day event will spread sales over a longer period,” Momentum wrote in its report. “But initial hours are still seen as a key indication.”
AI – the new retail battleground
While discounts dominate headlines, another retail revolution is reshaping the e-commerce landscape: AI-driven shopping.
Traffic to UK retail sites from AI tools has surged 1,200 per cent since August 2024, as shoppers increasingly use chatbots and search assistants to compare prices and generate shopping lists.
Retailers are racing to keep up. Adobe found that consumers spend 23 per cent more time on sites when directed there by generative AI, and conversion rates have doubled over the past two months.
It’s a trend that gives big retail giants like Amazon an edge in data and discovery, but creates opportunities for nimble brands that can adapt easily.