Amazon Wins Christmas With 3 Million New Prime Members
I'm a retail geek, having reported on consumer electronics and mass-market retail trends since 1995, for trade and consumer magazines and Web sites. I'm the Executive Editor at FierceRetail (get our newsletter) and teach journalism at Columbia College Chicago. Follow me on Twitter: @lfheller
The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.
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Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.
Amazon has likely won Christmas this year, adding 3 million new Amazon Prime members and posting record sales of its own branded products.
It’s only Dec. 28., but Amazon typically issues an after Christmas report listing its victories, complete with fun facts about its most popular purchases. This year, Amazon says it added 3 million Prime members in the third week of December alone.
Amazon doesn’t report how many Prime members it has, choosing only to say it’s in the tens of millions. But Macquarie Research estimates that 25% of U.S. households are Prime members and that the retailer added roughly 7 million new members in 2015. But that research was before Amazon’s latest announcement and the number could actually be much higher.
Because Prime and Amazon’s retail dominance is growing fast. Macquarie estimates that membership will double by 2020, and Amazon is doing everything it can to add benefits to the program. From same-day delivery in some markets to streaming original content and one of the most robust digital entertainment line-up aimed at cable “cord cutters.” This last group is comprised largely of millennials who want to pick and choose their content rather than paying for a cable of satellite subscription, and the more Amazon adds earns their loyalty, the more market share they gain of the most coveted consumer demographic.
Amazon accounts for roughly 50% of all online retail sales growth in the United States and 24% of total retail sales growth across all channels, according to Macquarie Research. More than half of U.S. shoppers had planned to buy holiday gifts from Amazon, according to a poll from Reuters/Ipsos. Big-box retailers are falling further behind in their ability to compete with Amazon—Walmart, the world’s largest retailer was the destination of choice for just 16% percent of holiday shoppers, according to the poll.
It’s only Dec. 28., but Amazon typically issues an after Christmas report listing its victories, complete with fun facts about its most popular purchases. This year, Amazon says it added 3 million Prime members in the third week of December alone.
Amazon doesn’t report how many Prime members it has, choosing only to say it’s in the tens of millions. But Macquarie Research estimates that 25% of U.S. households are Prime members and that the retailer added roughly 7 million new members in 2015. But that research was before Amazon’s latest announcement and the number could actually be much higher.
Because Prime and Amazon’s retail dominance is growing fast. Macquarie estimates that membership will double by 2020, and Amazon is doing everything it can to add benefits to the program. From same-day delivery in some markets to streaming original content and one of the most robust digital entertainment line-up aimed at cable “cord cutters.” This last group is comprised largely of millennials who want to pick and choose their content rather than paying for a cable of satellite subscription, and the more Amazon adds earns their loyalty, the more market share they gain of the most coveted consumer demographic.
Bags are loaded for delivery at Amazon’s urban fulfillment facility, Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015 in New York. This holiday season, Amazon Prime customers, using the Amazon Prime Now app, can get free delivery in less than two hours through Christmas Eve. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
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