UAE's Amazon Prime Day sales expected to double this year

About 63 per cent of Amazon Prime subscribers in the UAE use their membership to enjoy discounts during the mega-sale, Redseer says

Amazon has announced that its 2020 Prime Day sale is to take place on June 21 and 22. Courtesy Amazon

Amazon Prime Day sales in the UAE are expected to double this year, compared to last year, as thrifty shoppers take advantage of steep discounts on the online shopping platform amid a sharp increase in e-commerce, according to Indian research company Redseer.

The two-day shopping promotion, which begins on Tuesday, is usually held in June in the UAE to boost sales on the platform.

“Happening for the third time in UAE, Prime Day in the UAE will seemingly be larger,” said Redseer.

“UAE consumers are blessed with high competition and high discounts.”

Online shopping has become more popular after governments around the world introduced movement restrictions to stop the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

E-commerce sales in the Mena region are set to triple from $8.3 billion in 2017 to $28.5bn next year, according to research by Bain & Company and Google.

UAE Prime members will be able to take advantage of deals across every category on the platform, including electronics, fashion, beauty and home and kitchen.

About 63 per cent of Amazon Prime subscribers in the UAE use their membership to enjoy discounts that are exclusively available to them during the promotion, Redseer said.

The UAE’s sales forecast for Amazon Prime Day beats projections for other countries, the consultancy said.

In comparison, the US is expected to record only a 43 per cent increase, compared with the same period a year ago.

However, the UAE’s Prime Day is still in an “emerging phase” compared with more mature markets, according to the consultancy.

UAE Prime Day sales are 140 per cent higher than the normal daily average, compared to 250 per cent for Prime Day sales in the US.

“The UAE market is nascent, compared to other Prime countries, because of its small Prime user base,” said Redseer.

“In the coming years, we expect that the UAE will follow the growth trajectory witnessed in the US and that Prime Day sales growth will reach 250 per cent from ordinary days.”

The Amazon Prime membership base consists of 200 million people, of which 70 per cent are in the US.

The most popular products sold during the two-day promotion are usually electronics.

However, the category is expected to record a 10 per cent decline this year as shoppers explore offers in other sections, Redseer said.

In 2020, the top-performing products in terms of sales were electronics and accessories, clothes and home care items.