🎉 Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days returns October 7-8
Amazon will kick off the holiday shopping season with Prime Big Deal Days on October 7–8. Early deals are already live across Amazon brands, devices, and big-name products from Samsung, Dyson, and Clinique.
With more than 200 million Prime members, the event reinforces Amazon’s dominance as it competes for early holiday spending especially after July’s record-breaking Prime Day. Sellers should expect heightened competition, fast-moving trends, and big opportunities to capture demand.
📖 Read next: 9 Amazon seller mistakes to avoid during Prime Big Deal Days
📈 Deloitte forecasts steady holiday growth despite inflation
Deloitte projects U.S. holiday sales to grow 2.9–3.4% this season, reaching up to $1.62 trillion, with ecommerce up 7–9%. Rising disposable incomes will offset inflation’s drag, but shoppers may spend more selectively.
For marketplace managers, the signal is clear: ecommerce will remain resilient, but deal-seeking behavior will be stronger than ever. AI-powered deal discovery and early promotions could prove decisive in capturing share.
👉 Download your Peak Season Toolkit to prepare now.
🎁 AI shopping tools: consumer curiosity vs. real adoption
Nearly 70% of consumers say they’re open to AI shopping tools, but only 3% begin their journey with ChatGPT-like assistants. Most still start with search engines, marketplaces, or curated gift guides. Younger generations are the most curious, though today’s AI assistants often fall short of expectations.
This gap highlights the real challenge for retailers: moving beyond generic recommendations and building AI journeys that reflect preferences, purchase history, and context. That’s when AI shifts from a novelty to a real revenue driver.
Krystell Statie,
📖 AI-Powered Product Discovery: How Social and GenAI are transforming the funnel
🔍 Target bets on GEO: from keywords to conversations
Target is preparing for the next search revolution: Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Instead of typing “tableware,” shoppers are now asking “what’s a good gift for a nine-year-old?” or “how do I host a summer party?”
For retailers, this means delivering contextual, bundled results that showcase an entire assortment, not just single products. With AI agents increasingly browsing on behalf of customers, ensuring product visibility outside your own site is critical.
🎯Read more: Peak Season Guide for Sellers with Target Plus’ insights.
🛠️ Amazon ecosystem moves: AI, logistics & compliance
Amazon is reinforcing its ecosystem with three major updates designed to lock in sellers and boost efficiency:
🤖 Seller Assistant with agentic AI: New capabilities flag slow-moving products, optimize shipments, suggest markdowns, and even generate ad campaigns. The goal? Free sellers from operational headaches and deepen their reliance on Amazon’s platform.
📦 Multi-Channel Fulfillment expansion: Now covering Walmart, Shopify, and Shein, sellers can pool inventory across platforms, cutting out-of-stocks by 19% and increasing turnover by 12%. Amazon also launched new global warehousing hubs, shipping lanes, and AI-powered customs clearance.
🔒 Authenticity crackdown: Electronics sellers in Europe must now prove product authenticity with strict documentation. Non-compliance risks delisting and destroying stock, raising the compliance bar for sellers.
Together, these moves highlight Amazon’s strategy to own the full seller journey—from listing to fulfillment to compliance—tightening its grip on marketplace operations.
Mitchell Dröge,📖 Explore more: Agentic commerce and what it means for marketplaces
🌍 Walmart recruits European sellers for cross-border growth
Walmart is actively recruiting European sellers to join its U.S., Canadian, Mexican, and Chilean marketplaces. A new seller office in London and the UK Seller Summit 2025 aim to ease onboarding and promote cross-border expansion.
Through Walmart Fulfillment Services, European merchants gain access to fast delivery, advertising tools, and a centralized platform to manage operations across the Americas. With ecommerce now profitable in North America, Walmart’s expansion highlights the globalization of marketplace selling.
👗 SHEIN vs. Temu: fast-fashion giants race for European dominance
SHEIN and Temu are battling for the top spot in European ecommerce. Between February and July 2025, SHEIN added 15.2 million new monthly users, reaching 145.7 million, while Temu surged 12.5% to 115.7 million users.
France, Spain, and Italy remain Shein’s largest markets, but Germany led growth with a 24% jump. Meanwhile, Temu’s fastest growth came in France (+19.4%) and Romania (+20.5%). Despite Temu’s rapid rise, Shein still leads by 30 million users and remains Europe’s top-grossing Chinese fast-fashion platform.
For marketplace managers, this rivalry shows the fierce competition in Europe’s low-price fashion sector. With both platforms scaling aggressively and regulators watching closely, brands face both new risks and opportunities in tapping these massive audiences.
Niels Floors,
