The report: Amazon is reportedly keeping its Prime Big Deal Days event to two days, per Modern Retail.

If true, that’s a bit of a surprise—and runs counter to our prediction of a longer sale on a recent episode of "Reimagining Retail"—after Amazon touted that doubling Prime Day to four days in July produced its “biggest Prime Day event ever,” with record sales and more items sold than any previous four-day Prime Day stretch.

Amazon could not be reached for comment.

Why this may be happening: Several factors could explain why Amazon may be taking a more conservative approach this fall:

• Seller fatigue: Many sellers may be at their limit, unable to sustain four straight days of discounting and the heavy ad spending required to compete, particularly as tariffs squeeze their margins.
• Consumer caution: With tariff-driven price increases hitting wallets, shoppers may pull back on discretionary spending in the second half of the year. Some signs are already emerging—restaurant and bar spending fell 0.4% MoM in July, typically a peak vacation period.
• Comparison shopping risk: The longer Prime Day event reduced the sense of urgency, giving consumers more time to shop around. That dynamic produced embarrassing headlines like “Amazon Prime Day Spending Down 14% in Early Hours From 2024,” something the retailer may want to avoid repeating.