Christmas is over. But there’s probably a chance that you have a few empty package boxes around your living room floor. And, there’s also a good chance that the Amazon Prime delivery label remains slapped across some of the those boxes that you’re stepping over today.
Well, if you ordered gifts using Amazon Prime, you aren’t alone. In fact, according to the online retailer, it shipped more than 1 billion items for free in the United States with its Prime service over the just completed holiday season.
Amazon didn’t disclose any revenue numbers, or sales figures for specific items. The company did say it experienced a “record-breaking” season for holiday-related sales and that “tens of millions of people worldwide started Prime free trials or began paid memberships” during the end-of-the-year shopping period.
Amazon said the rise of its connected home products continued to have an impact on how people shopped over Christmas and the holidays, as use of its Alexa voice-command technology for shopping “more than tripled” this year compared to its usage in 2017. Amazon also said its sold millions more of its branded devices over a year ago, with the Echo, Echo Dot and Fire TV Stick 4K with Alexa voice remote among its top sellers.
As expected, toys were among the most-popular items Amazon shipped over the holidays. The company said top sellers in the U.S. and around the world included the L.O.L. Surprise! Glam Glitter Series Doll with 7 Surprises, and the Nerf N-Strike Elite Strongarm Blaster. Electronics also sold well, with the the Samsung Flat 65-inch4K UHD 8 Series Smart LED T and 32-gigabyte Apple iPad with WiFi in Space Grey color at the top of the list.
And Amazon made sure that it got as many things under people’s Christmas trees in as possible. The company said it made its final Prime Now delivery that included a Lego Super Heroes Captain America Building Kit, a Hallmark card, Greek yogurt, and shampoo at 11;30 p.m. Christmas Eve to a residence in Berkeley.
