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What Will Prime Day 2020 Look Like With Amazon’s Inventory Restrictions?

This week, Amazon AMZN -1.3% announced inventory restrictions whereby third party sellers will generally be restricted to stocking approximately three months worth of inventory at Amazon fulfillment centers. The restrictions have incredibly awkward timing: the most-likely (and still officially unconfirmed) date for Prime Day is sometime in October, less than three months away at time of publication.

Prime Day, Amazon’s made-up shopping holiday, has predictably run every July since 2015. Variations on the theme have occurred - the duration of the event, the price that brands pay to run deals, the exact date in July that the holiday fell. But in 2020, all sense of tradition has been thrown out the window. Here are four predictions as to what Prime Day will look like in 2020.

1. Amazon devices and subscriptions will be front and center this Prime Day

2. Amazon private label brands will also be in focus

3. Many national brands will hold out for the ‘Turkey Five’ event

4. Some brands will shift back to merchant-fulfilled offers