US shoppers aren’t flocking to Amazon Haul: survey

Amazon, long established as the preferred platform for bargain-hungry shoppers, hasn’t generated a similar response for its low-cost Haul offering.

Amazon’s discounted store hasn’t seen much interest from US shoppers so far, the latest survey data from Omnisend shows. Despite the slow start, Amazon’s dollar store may be planning to expand into Europe later this year, according to CNBC.

Among the 1,000 consumers surveyed in February, 76% reported they had not shopped from Amazon Haul within the past year. (Technically, only about two months of last year, since Haul rolled out in November 2024.)

According to Greg Zakowicz, senior e-commerce expert at Omnisend, Amazon is playing catch-up with rival platform Temu, which launched in the US in September 2022.

“The fact that Temu has solidified itself as that retailer—for low-cost, long shipping times, direct from China retailer, regardless if Amazon has the name brand to it, I think [shoppers] have [already] defined those roles,” Zakowicz told Retail Brew. “They look at Temu and say, ‘That’s what they do. That’s what I go there to shop for.’ And I think Amazon, as funny as it is, is playing a lot of catch-up to Temu.”

Onmisend’s survey reported that 16% of respondents use Haul at least once a month, compared to 28% that shop on Temu and 23% that shop on Shein on a monthly basis. And only about 1% of those surveyed by Onmisend reported shopping at Amazon Haul daily.

Amazon said it’s just the beginning for Haul, however it didn’t share any data pointing to Haul’s popularity. “We’re pleased with the positive customer feedback and response so far,” Amazon’s Maxine Tagay, PR manager for Amazon, wrote in an emailed response to Retail Brew’s query.

For anyone clued into the space, Haul was launched to fend off China-linked e-commerce platforms Shein and Temu in the US, although the future of all three online shopping platforms remains under a cloud because of Trump tariffs.

With looming price increases, nearly one-third (29.45%) of consumers surveyed said they would immediately reduce or stop buying from Chinese marketplaces like Temu if prices increased. Another 20.75% said they would continue shopping only if the price hikes were insignificant, or less than 20%.