https://qz.com/1328973/amazon-prime-day-all-the-other-stores-running-deals-worth-checking-out/

As the heat builds in the summer months, department stores have for years tried to woo potential customers in with air conditioning and decent sales. In the US, there are Memorial Day sales, “Christmas in July” sales, clearance sales, Labor Day sales, and countless others, as retailers try to boost their bottom lines during the traditionally slow shopping period.

But no brand had ever had the dominance, or perhaps the wherewithal, to come up with its own shopping holiday—until Amazon.