Amazon Promises Record Exclusives and 60% Discounts for Black Friday Week

Amazon will run its Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday events from Nov. 19 through Nov. 30, with discounts of up to 60% and a record number of Amazon exclusives, the company said in a Tuesday press release.

The deals span 12 days of themed promotions covering toys, technology, fashion and beauty, plus category-specific days for premium gifts and stocking stuffers. For the first time, Amazon will announce deals twice daily on both Black Friday and Cyber Monday, at midnight and 8 a.m. PT.

Partnership exclusives include Swarovski, Caraway, Spicy Dan and Naadam, alongside discounts from brands such as Le Creuset, HP, Google and Stanley.

What's the commercial backdrop?

The events land just over a month after Amazon's October Prime Big Deal Days, which drove nearly $10 billion in online sales for U.S. retailers, according to Adobe estimates. Amazon moved its July Prime Day event from Q3 to Q2 this year and did not release sales figures after it concluded — but Adobe said the June event lifted U.S. online retail spend about 9.3% year over year to $26.4 billion.

Amazon said it is offering "millions of deals" this time around. To cut through that volume, the company built a holiday shop offering "a fully personalized experience — surfacing gift recommendations based on customers' shopping history, preferences, and family needs so the most relevant ideas appear first."

For shoppers who prefer letting recipients pick their own gifts, Amazon added personalized digital gift cards and Talking Pets, which lets customers upload a pet photo and "bring it to life to deliver a holiday greeting."

How central is AI to the pitch?

Very. The personalization engine is Amazon's AI-powered Alexa for Shopping, which lets shoppers create product alerts, track deals and prices, and auto-buy products "when the price is right."

"Alexa for Shopping acts as a personal holiday shopping expert — creating lists, tracking prices, setting deal alerts, and doing the deal hunting," Doug Herrington, CEO of worldwide Amazon stores, said in a statement.

Where do small businesses fit?

Amazon is pushing independent sellers hard this season. The company said "more than 60% of sales in Amazon's store come from independent sellers," and shoppers can tell Alexa for Shopping to "shop small businesses" or look for the Small Business badge.

Big brands get their share too. Amazon pre-announced discounts from dozens of companies including Yankee Candle, Calvin Klein, Mario Badescu, Crayola and its private label Amazon Essentials.

Sports fans can use the "Shop the Game" experience on Prime broadcasts to buy merchandise shown during games airing Nov. 25 and again on Black Friday. Other offers include promotional pricing on Amazon devices, special offers on Kindle, Prime Visa and Prime Store Cards, auto and travel discounts, and a Prime for Young Adults day on Nov. 24.

How healthy is the underlying retail business?

In its third quarter, Amazon's online store net sales rose 2% year over year to $68.5 billion, while physical store net sales grew at the same rate to $5.7 billion. On the Oct. 29 earnings call, CEO Andy Jassy said retail remains a core part of the business even as the company leans into Amazon Web Services and AI investments.

"I'm not aware of another retail business approaching Amazon's revenue size — hundreds of billions of dollars, with double-digit operating margins inclusive of ads — that's growing at this pace," Jassy said.

With twice-daily deal drops and AI agents doing the deal hunting, Amazon is betting automation, not just discounts, will carry the holiday season.