Parallel Retail Group

📦 Amazon Prime Big Deal Days 2025 just wrapped, and the results tell an important story about what's ahead for Q4.   While Amazon projected 💰$9B in sales (+6.2% YoY), we heard the event came in softer than expected. Industry data from Numerator confirms why: only 23% of shoppers bought gifts. Instead, consumers stocked up on essentials (25%), purchased everyday items (28%), and finally bought waitlist items (45%).   For our clients, preparation was everything. Brands that secured Best Deal badging and Prime placement significantly outperformed those with standard promotions.    What Worked   ✅ Deeper discounts (40-50% off) dramatically outperformed modest ones ✅ One client's FBA-enrolled ASINs drove 72% of total sales  ✅ Real-time optimization and budget monitoring maintained ROAS despite softer demand  ✅ Brands with distinctive content outperformed competitors using auto-generated updates   What We Learned  🥇 Shoppers were browsing, not buying: Traffic surged (+100-290% for some clients), but conversion rates dropped 🥈 Shoppers returned: Day 2 performance varied more than typical 2-day events (some clients peaked on day 2 instead of day 1) 🥉 Categories matter: Household essentials and seasonal products (winter gear) outperformed discretionary items   Looking Ahead 🎁 With online holiday sales projected at $253.4B (+5.3% vs. +8.7% last year), the message is clear: consumers are selective. Black Friday and Cyber Monday will require deeper discounts, tighter inventory management, and strategic flexibility.   The brands that win Q4 will be those who adapt quickly, optimize relentlessly, and understand that in a cautious market, price and priority win.   #Amazon #Ecommerce #RetailStrategy #PrimeBigDealDays #Q4Planning #RetailGuides

We’re thrilled to announce the promotion of Lauren Knisley to Senior Content & Branding Specialist at Parallel Retail Group! For 3+ years, Lauren has been a key team resource – supporting content initiatives across accounts, strengthening brand storytelling, and fostering collaboration. She takes ownership of projects from execution to strategy, helping position our brands for long-term success. She embodies Parallel’s core values daily, through her proactive communication, and commitment to driving results on the Content & Branding Team.

Day 3 at Amazon Accelerate wrapped up the conference with a focus on smarter fulfillment and supply chain innovation. Amazon is doubling down on efficiency — and the benefits for sellers are big! Highlights from today’s reveals: 🔹 Supply Chain Optimization – Cost-saving tools and faster product-to-customer timelines; streamlining logistics end-to-end 🔹 FBA Enhancements – Amazon’s FBA Regional Launch program lets sellers test new products in one US region first—so they can gauge demand and optimize inventory without the upfront risk of sending product nationwide. This helps sellers minimize costs and fine-tune their strategy. 🔹New A+ modules – fresh interactive modules launched in A+ Content, improving the on-site customer experience. These updates open exciting opportunities to deliver fast and effective retail experiences for our Parallel Retail Group brand partners — while keeping costs down and launch timelines tight. We are grateful for the insights, connections, and collaboration garnered this week. Across all three days, one thing was clear: staying ahead in retail means embracing innovation, moving fast, and always thinking customer-first. #AmazonAccelerate #SupplyChainInnovation #FBA #Ecommerce #ParallelRetailGroup #AmazonSellers #RetailTech #FutureOfRetail

Day 2 at Amazon Accelerate did not disappoint! 🚀 The theme? Innovation powered by AI — and the future is already unfolding. Key takeaways from today’s sessions include: 🔹 Seller Assistant Expansion – Smarter, faster support with AI-driven recommendations, and enhancing listings 🔹 Amazon AI Creative Studio + Video Generator – Leveling the creative playing field with quick, high-quality content for ads and product detail pages 🔹 Account Health Evolutions – Proactive alerts to identify and resolve issues before they impact performance At Parallel Retail Group, we’re excited to apply these advancements to streamline operations for our brand partners, enhance creative output without adding overhead, and stay ahead of compliance and performance issues through smart automation. And yes — we had an amazing time at the Amazon Block Party connecting with fellow sellers, innovators, and the incredible Sell on Amazon community. 🎉 Kelly Vassallo Amber Steinwagner Abby Stockness Madelyn (Maddie) Kranz Saydee Haugrud #AmazonAccelerate #AIInnovation #Ecommerce #ParallelRetailGroup #AmazonSellers #RetailTech #FutureOfRetail

Just in from Day 1 Amazon Accelerate! 1️⃣ The team has unlocked: ✅ New actionable steps to address customer feedback to reduce return rate ✅ Holiday advertising success insights from the Amazon ads team ✅ Valuable Amazon policy compliance guidance We ended the day at the Fireside chat with CEO Andy Jassy, and look forward to digging into new Amazon Ad capabilities, continuous AI innovations, and fulfillment efficiencies in the upcoming days. We even had a chance to tour Seattle and refuel/relax along the way. ☕️😌 Team Parallel Retail Group attending: Kelly Vassallo Amber Steinwagner Abby Stockness Madelyn (Maddie) Kranz Saydee Haugrud #amazonaccelerate #prg #amazonsellerconference #sellwithamazon

Another PRG summer ballpark tradition in the books! The Parallel Retail Group crew wrapped up the last of a three-game series cheering on the Minnesota Twins vs. the Athletics*. Even though the Twins didn’t pull off a win, we had plenty to enjoy—Dome Dogs, brats, beer, popcorn, nachos, and more. For a few hours, our “office” was the Truly on Deck Patio at @Target Field. With nearly the whole team in attendance, it was the perfect afternoon to step away from the day-to-day, soak up the sunshine, and share time together. A good reminder: it’s as much about the people as it is about the work. To sum it up—sunny skies, mid-70s, great company, and no home run ball controversies! *Not Oakland, not Las Vegas, just Athletics! #ParallelRetailGroup #TeamCulture

The Parallel Retail Group digital team is looking forward to attending Amazon Accelerate 2025! Are you going? Let's connect!   We’re looking forward to learning about the latest AI-driven insights and fulfillment strategies that help our clients optimize sales, streamline operations, and drive profitability. It’s a great opportunity to bring back actionable strategies to support brands in scaling efficiently to Sell on Amazon. #amazonaccelerate #prg #Amazonseller #Amazonsellerconference #SellwithAmazon #sellwithAmazon

Now that the dust has settled on Prime Day, here's what we learned at PDS: • Overall Sales Surge: Across our diverse portfolio, we experienced phenomenal growth. Our aggregated sales for Prime Day hit a remarkable +95.1% increase over last year's event.   • Traffic & Engagement: Total ordered revenue across combined accounts saw a +40.4% YOY increase, driven by a +149.3% surge in traffic (sessions).   • Brand Store: Brand Stores saw a strong boost in visits, views, and overall engagement during Prime Day. Dwell time also improved for nearly every account year-over-year, particularly for visitors from organic traffic sources.   • Ad Strategies: Advertising efforts proved highly effective, with several brands seeing their ad sales increase at significantly higher rates than their ad spending, leading to strong Returns on Ad Spend (ROAS). This indicates efficient targeting and compelling creative successfully converted traffic into sales. Our results show that consistent engagement throughout the extended event was crucial. Especially as urgency increased throughout the 3rd and 4th day. This Prime Day reaffirmed the critical role of robust digital strategies, continual content optimization, and intelligent advertising in capitalizing on peak sales periods. We're already looking ahead to applying these learnings for future events like Prime Big Deal Days coming this fall! #PrimeDay2025 #eCommerce #DigitalMarketing #AmazonSales #BrandPerformance #RetailTrends

Last week a slew of Parallel Retail Group team members attended the Best Buy Connected Car Show including: Sara Childers, Skip Lockrem, Chelsea Schmidt, Rachel Leon, Chris Ekdahl, and Phil Kalleberg. The event, held at Best Buy HQ, featured a fleet of vehicles with the latest and greatest tech from the likes of JVC, Metra Electronics, Heise, Viper, KENWOOD, Kicker, Cedar Electronics and Pioneer Automotive Technologies, Inc.—including their spatial audio car, highlighting the cutting edge of in-car sound innovation. Props to Skip's 4Runner and Chris' Rubicon for showcasing their upgraded auto & lighting setups. Huge shout out to Sara Childers for winning the 2025 People's Choice Award for her '83 VW Jetta 1.8T swap project car! Lots of cool rides on a very hot day. #bestbuy #caraudio #connectedcar #autotech #PDS

Meet the team at Parallel Retail Group! Today, we're shining the spotlight on Rachel Leon. Rachel, leads our Best Buy channel and comes with a wealth of experience inside and outside of Best Buy. She is strategic, a team player, curious, and inventive - we are so glad to have her on the team! #EmployeeSpotlightWednesday #bestinretail #meettheteam #culture #PDS