Eye on Retail: Prime time for mass retailers

Three big retailers are joining Amazon in hosting holiday sales extravaganzas in early October.

One day after Amazon announced it will start its holiday promotional season early with the second annual Prime Big Deal Days sales extravaganza kicking off Tuesday, Oct. 10, Walmart, Target and Best Buy have all released details on their own holiday sales events that will be happening around the same time.

Following is a brief overview of each retailer’s October sales event.

Walmart

Walmart said it will host its ‘Walmart Deals – Holiday Kickoff’ savings event, featuring deals on thousands of holiday gift items across categories such as electronics, home, fashion, and toys, from Monday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m. ET through Thursday, Oct. 12.

Customers can shop the ‘Walmart Deals – Holiday Kickoff’ savings event on the discounter’s e-commerce site, where Walmart says it will offer hyper-personalized content and a curated shopping experience.

The retailer also began offering some holiday shopping features in early October 2022. Unlike Amazon and Target (see below), Walmart will not require shoppers to join any type of subscription or loyalty program to obtain its fall holiday savings.

Target

Target is holding its annual Circle Week fall savings event Oct. 1-7, featuring a full week of discounts on thousands of items, with up to 40% off members of the free Target Circle loyalty program.

Also starting Oct. 1, Target will bring back its Deal of the Day program (formerly called “Deal Days”) with daily discounts exclusively for Target Circle members. Every day through Dec. 24, members can access savings on holiday items both in store and on the Target e-commerce site.

In addition, Target will offer digital influencer storefronts on a dedicated section of its e-commerce site. The retailer says its 2023 holiday assortment features more than 10,000 new items from its owned brands, like Good & Gather and Threshold, as well as new products from national brands and more than 1,000 new toys.

Best Buy

Starting Sunday, Oct. 1, Best Buy is kicking off a monthlong early holiday promotion. Every day in October, Plus and Total members of its Totaltech annual membership program will get exclusive access to thousands of deals and discounts.

In addition, Totaltech members who spend $500 in October will receive a $50 reward certificate to use on Best Buy purchases in December. Best Buy will also provide loyalty members early access to some Black Friday deals the weekend of Oct. 27-29.

Best Buy is also running some October holiday promotions that do not require Totaltech membership to participate:

• Best Buy is teaming up with Samsung (Oct. 6-8) and Microsoft (Oct. 13-15) for two special sale events. Shoppers who spend $1,000 on Samsung products, including home theater and appliances, between Oct. 6-8 will receive a $100 reward to use on other Samsung products between Oct. 24 and Nov. 16. During the Microsoft event, customers can obtain offers on Xbox and Windows products, including savings up to $500 on Windows laptops.

• From Oct. 10-11, Best Buy will have a 48-Hour Flash Sale with hundreds of deals on technology items such as TVs and laptops, headphones and smartwatches, and electric transportation.

• Best Buy is hosting a three-day gaming sale event from Oct. 20-22 with deals on hardware, games and accessories.

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This article appeared first in Chain Store Age, sister publication of HBSDealer.