Record-Breaking Cyber Monday

This could be the biggest US online shopping day in history. 

Cyber Monday is expected to generate $6.6 billion in sales. That’s a nearly 17% increase over last year.

Amazon customers worldwide bought more than 64 million items on Cyber Monday last year; that’s 740 items per second. 

This time around, a surge in shoppers clicking their smart phones will keep the employees inside the mammoth fulfillment center just as busy, according to Amazon spokeswoman Lori Torgerson.

A lot of shoppers didn’t wait for Cyber Monday deals. They got a head start, on Black Friday. Consumers spent record $5 billion online the day after Thanksgiving, enticed by deep discounts on computers (15.9% on avg), televisions (21.6%), and toys (17.3%).  

The increasing popularity of online shopping is also putting pressure on traditional retailers, says economics professor David Clark.

Amazon, which has hired more than 120,000 seasonal employees to work at its 75 fulfillment centers across the country, doesn’t believe Cyber Monday will necessarily lead to brick and mortar stores going out of business.

This warehouse is highly automated, but Amazon says that just creates more holiday work for people, including more than 4,000 employees at one of its’ warehouses.