The back-to-school season is here, and a growing number of early summer sales from the likes of Amazon, Walmart, and Target are changing when and how shoppers purchase their fall essentials.

“I think that Prime Day and the associated sales and discounts from other retailers around Prime Day are being used as a kickoff for back to school,” Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail, told Retail Brew.

This is pulling back-to-school spending forward, he said, as parents take advantage of bargains offered at mid-July sales events such as Target Circle Week and Walmart Deals, which have emerged as brick-and-mortar retailers’ answer to Prime Day.

Getting a headstart: This shift in spending is already evident in early survey data. A report from the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics found that 55% of shoppers, as of early July, have already started making purchases for the upcoming school year. Data from JLL showed an even more dramatic shift in spending, with 75.3% of parents on track to start back-to-school shopping by July.

“Families and students are eager to get a jumpstart on their shopping for the start of the school year,” Katherine Cullen, NRF’s VP of industry and consumer insights, said in a statement. “Retailers have anticipated this early demand and are well positioned to offer a variety of products at competitive prices.”

Keep reading here.—AV

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Target finally hit the mark in Q2 with a return to growth after several quarters of slumping sales. The turnaround, CEO Brian Cornell told shareholders, is the result of the retail giant’s focus on lowering prices and providing value to inflation-weary customers.

“On the frequency side of our assortment, both our food and beverage, and essential categories saw traffic growth in the quarter as consumers are responding to our offerings in an environment where they’re focused on value,” he said in an earnings call.

The executive said Target cut prices on 5,000 frequently purchased items over the summer, and launched a new loyalty program, Target Circle, that added more than 2 million new members in Q2.

Christine Short, vice president of research at Wall Street Horizon, told Retail Brew that Cornell signaled these moves back in Q1 when he said Target needed to communicate to customers that it could offer value.

Keep reading here.—AV

On Monday, SpaceX’s Falcon 6 is set to launch into space with some special cargo: Doritos. The snack brand says its Cool Ranch Zero Gravity flavored mini tortilla chips are “made for space,” because they’re small enough to eat in a single bite, so their flavoring doesn’t float away in zero gravity. The launch is part of the Polaris Dawn Mission, during which the crew plans to execute the first commercial space walk and study the health effects of long-term space travel.

Here’s what else is going on in retail this week:

In sporting events: The US Open kicks off Monday, and that means over the next two weeks, visitors to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York, can start shopping at the event’s on-site retail outlets. Sporty apparel brands such as Nike, Wilson, Polo Ralph Lauren, and Fila will have a presence at the stadium.

Keep reading here.—AV