Amazon Sales Actually Increase During Feb. 28 ‘Economic Blackout’ Boycott

In a bit of perhaps surprising news, Amazon weathered the promised Feb. 28 “economic blackout” boycott promoted by The People’s Union USA with little issue, according to Forbes.

Instead of suffering a sales slump during the day of the boycott, the outlet reported, Amazon actually saw a slight uptick. Citing data from Momentum Commerce, Amazon sales versus a typical Friday were up by 1%. An early morning through midday surge of 6.8% against comparable sales softened as the day drew on, but as Feb. 28 drew to a close, the retail giant’s sales figures remained higher than usual.

“Overall we’re not seeing a major downturn in sales on Amazon U.S. today, although the peak hours are a bit softer from the average Friday,” John T. Shea, CEO of Momentum Commerce, told Forbes’ Kiri Masters on the day of the boycott.

Amazon Defies Economic Blackout Boycott, Despite Motivated Participants

Amazon appeared to emerge from the economic blackout boycott unscathed, despite the participation — by abstaining from purchases — of several individuals. The Guardian profiled two different boycotters who specifically mentioned Amazon as being on their list of retailers to avoid.

“These billionaires like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos — they have an unprecedented amount of access to the government, to the president, to the congressional members,” said Eric Butcher, an activist from Bakersfield, California. “All the dark and powerful money has always been in our politics, but now it’s unprecedented. It’s so public and in your face. The only thing that they understand is money. So we have to hit them where it hurts.”

“I’ve always participated in economic boycotts, like Buy Nothing Day, which goes back more than 25 years,” said Lisa Rayner, a small business owner from Santa Fe, Texas. “Even though I am disabled and I shop at Amazon for some items, I made a decision last year after the election to stock up on a few essential items that I really needed and to spend as little as possible to do so. I’ve already cut down on expenses.”

“[I hope] people learn that they can live without these big corporations. Maybe it gives them time to reflect on how to live their lives differently as citizens rather than consumers and to feel like, yes, we can do it. We can cooperate, and we can beat them,” she added.

Amazon may not be entirely out of the woods yet, however. The company is being targeted for a specific boycott by The People’s Union USA, one spanning the week of March 7 through March 14. Boycotts taking aim at General Mills and McDonald’s are slated for later dates this year.