During the darkest days of the Covid pandemic, Amazon experienced some of the same shortages that impacted brick-and-mortar grocery stores. The online giant struggled to keep its customers supplied with basic items, so it stopped taking deliveries of less essential items.
People needed toilet paper, hand sanitizer, so Amazon (AMZN) had to make some difficult choices. The company explained its decision in an internal memo,
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"We are seeing increased online shopping, and as a result, some products such as household staples and medical supplies are out of stock. With this in mind, we are temporarily prioritizing household staples, medical supplies, and other high-demand products coming into our fulfillment centers so that we can more quickly receive, restock, and deliver these products to customers."
The move made sense for Amazon, but it also created opportunities for rival retailers. You could argue, in fact, that the short-term change opened a door for pet supply company Chewy (CHWY) , as Amazon was not stocking many pet essentials during that period.
That forced people who were already Amazon customers, who may never have considered shopping anywhere else, to sign up for Chewy. Once that happened, they became satisfied customers, and there was no reason for them to return to Amazon.
Amazon, however, wants to win some of that business back, and it's making another effort to do that by bringing back its "Pet Day" promotion.
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Amazon makes a bold offer to pet parents
Amazon Pet Day is essentially a massive sale on the online retailer's pet supplies inventory designed to win over pet parents.
"Amazon Pet Day is a 48-hour event for U.S. customers that features thousands of products on deal to help you feed, pamper, and play with the pets in your life," the company shared on its website.
It's basically a more focused version of its Prime Day promotions, except that it's open to all Amazon customers not just Prime members.
"Beginning May 7, pet lovers will have 48 hours to save on pet food, toys, apparel, pet care, home products, electronics, and more. Pet parents can start shopping early deals on April 23," Amazon shared. "During Amazon Pet Day, you’ll find deals on favorite brands including Purina, Merrick, Blue Buffalo, Petmate, HoppScotch.bun, Jinx Pet Food, Halo Collar, Bundle x Joy, Furbo, Genius Litter, and more."
Amazon is committed to pets
Amazon wants to make it clear to pet owners that it's committed to animals in a broad sense. The company shared that it offers pet-friendly workspaces.
"We even make it easy for pets to come to work at many of our offices. We have more than 14,000 registered dogs at over 135 Amazon offices across the U.S., Canada, and Australia thanks to our Dogs at Work program, which offers perks like designated spaces for dogs to play, dog-friendly events, discounted pet insurance, welcome packages for registered dogs, and of course, free treats. Dogs who come to work at Amazon even have their own badges," the company shared.
Amazon also offers a number of services specifically for pet owners including:
- Amazon Pet Profiles which allows customers to receive personalized recommendations based on your pet’s size, breed, and preferences.
- Subscribe and Save which helps people set up regularly scheduled deliveries and save on essentials like pet food, litter, toys, healthcare, and more.
- The Pet Deals Amazon page offers coupons, Lightning Deals, and more. Savings can range from 10% to more than 70% off.
The online retailer will offer more special deals leading up to its Pet Day promotion.
Amazon is a formidable competitor. Shares, which closed Friday at $186.13, off 1.5% on the day's selloff, are up 22.5% this year.
Chewy's shares fell 4.9% on Friday to $17.64. They are down 22% year to date. Founded in 2011, the company went public in 2019, and shares peaked at nearly $120 in early 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Revenue reached $11.1 billion in 2023.
