SAN ANTONIO – Summer shopping palooza kicked off with lighting deals, hot competition and plenty of hype around Amazon’s annual Prime Day.
First, you need to be an Amazon Prime member to score the big deals during the event that stretches 48 hours, ending late Wednesday.
“I think some of the smartest buys are some of Amazon’s own products. Think Kndle, fire TVs, Echo devices,” said Kristin McGrath with RetailMeNot.com.
Some Amazon Echo smart speakers are half off, and Amazon’s own apparel is fashionably discounted, too.
But McGrath said to look for deals on other big brands, like Ninja and Apple.
An Apple Watch Series 8 was marked down by 30%. And some Beats were more than half off.
Shoppers can find plenty of Barbie-themed products and plenty more competition.
Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Kohl’s and more retailers are battling for inflation-weary shopper attention and money.
“The Amazon hype really lifts all boats,” McGrath said. “Retailers across the board are throwing sales right now.”
The dead-of-summer sale is perfect timing for early back-to-school shoppers. Many deals, from laptops and tablets to crayons and glue sticks, are A-plus. But, it pays to comparison shop. A quick check of a few school supplies found prices similar at competing stores.
What should you wait on? McGrath says prices on gaming consoles and games typically hit their lowest closer to the winter holidays.
With so much hype, not to mention clocks ticking down on lighting deals, it can all be overwhelming. The fear of missing out is real.
“Think about the things you need to stock up on or replace and then start looking rather than jumping into the sales and letting the retailer tell you about all the things you didn’t know you needed,” McGrath said.