In 2014, retailers vied the consumer’s attention by rolling out early promotions and luring the price-conscious consumers; this year is no different with retailers pushing Back-to-School (BTS) sales as early as possible. But early reports by National Retail Foundation (NRF) and a recent survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), provides conflicting data on the BTS spending this year.
According to the survey conducted for NRF by Prosper Insights & Analytics, families with children in kindergarten through 12th grade plan to spend an average of US $ 630.36 on electronics, apparel and school supplies this year, down from US $ 669.28 in 2014. Also college shoppers and their families will be cautious on spending as they plan to spend an average US $ 899.18 exclusively on back-to-college items, down from US $ 916.48 last year. Kathy Grannis, Spokeswoman, NRF informs, “historical data shows it is common for families to cut back on spending after splurging the previous year. Consumers may also be factoring in guaranteed promotions that may help them save on purchases this year.”
Nonetheless the statistics provided by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) has a different take on BTS spending as the survey shows that 67 per cent of consumers plan to spend more on BTS purchases this year, up from 50 per cent last year. This jump is due to changes in school supply requirements and fashion trends. Also affecting the spending this year would be buying trends according to NRF survey, which shows that spending rises and falls year after year. “As seen over the last 13 years, spending on ‘Back-to-School’ has consistently fluctuated based on children’s needs each year, and their most unlikely families would need to restock and replenish apparel or other supplies every year. Parents this summer will look at their children’s school supplies and decide what is needed and what can be reused, which just makes good budgeting sense for families with growing children,” informs Matthew Shay, President and CEO, NRF.
While NRF’s survey was conducted amongst 6,500 consumers that has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.2 percentage points, ICSC surveyed 1,000 consumers on their spending plans. “We asked them point blank… will you spend more, less or the same. We asked how much more… but that becomes tricky, in that consumers rarely are able to accurately recall the exact amount they spent the previous year. All these surveys of course are opinionated but they do give us a good peek behind the curtain at consumer mindset,” reveals Jesse Tron, Spokesman, ICSC. Also suggesting a good BTS spending this year is the monthly Global Port Tracker according to which, as the BTS promotions kick-starts, the import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to increase 7.3 per cent this month over the same time last year as retailers stock up for the busy Back-to-School season.
More importantly, omnichannel would play a huge role in retail as nearly 48 per cent of school shoppers and 47 per cent of college shoppers say they will take advantage of retailer’s buy online, pick up in store or ship-to-store options. According to NRF, 9 in 10 or 92 per cent of school shoppers and 90 per cent of college shoppers will take advantage of retailer’s free shipping offers.
To tap consumers, a few retailers kick-started their BTS promotions well in advance (early June) such as Staples, Toys ‘R’ Us, Target, Amazon, etc. Toys ‘R’ Us kicked-off their Back-to-School deals with a “buy-a-backpack-get-a-freelunch-bag promotion”, along with discounted notebooks, crayons and more, while Staples launched its Back-to-School season sales at the end of June with a new 110 per cent price match guarantee. Target is focusing on apparel, including 40 per cent off on all denims, 30 per cent off on all kid’s apparel and accessories and free shipping at Target. com. While Amazon will hold ‘Prime Day,’ with savings on a wide range of merchandise, whereas Walmart.com will provide thousands of ‘rollbacks’ (discounts) and free standard shipping on purchases of US $ 35 or more.
With mixed reactions from the consumers, the hopeful import cargo data reveals otherwise, suggesting that retailers are stocking up to lure consumers whose spending powers are still limited due to the postrecession consumption pattern. It remains to be seen what families will spend on school items this BTS season, but one thing is clearly evident that retailers are trying hard through early promotions and discounts hoping that the priceconscious consumers spend!
According to a recent Consumer Pulse Survey from Rubicon Project, 56 per cent of parents are planning to spend more than last year. Parents surveyed for this study were those of K-12 as well as college students. The findings include:
- Nearly a quarter of K-12 parents have already begun Back-to-School shopping.
- K-12 parents plan to spend on an average US $ 873 per child while college parents plan to spend more than US $ 1,100 per child.
- 38 per cent of parents intend to purchase new tech products (e.g. laptops, tablets, mobile phones) to meet in-class needs and requirements.
- The top three stores parents plan to purchase tech items from this season are: Walmart, Amazon and Best Buy.
- 72 per cent of college parents pay for their children Backto-School items even though an astounding 75 per cent of the college students have a paying job.
- 61 per cent of parents said store sales/promotions are a top determinant of when they conduct Back-to-School shopping.
- 74 per cent of K-12 parents said they’d rather shop at a chain store rather than a small business if it meant that they would get the better deal.
