Early predictions about the 2009 Back to school shopping season are starting to make their way into the media. And it's not looking good for retailers.
Most parents of kids K-12 say they will cut back in spending this year due to the economy and the increased frugality that is becoming more of the shopping norm. NRF’s 2009 Back to School Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey (conducted by Columbus’ own BIGresearch) is showing a decline of 7.7% from BTS 2008 spending. The only spending this is expected to increase? Electronics, which is expected to increase by 11% as the prices of computers continue to become more affordable.
An unexpected benefactor to this upcoming BTS season may be drug stores (like Walgreens, CVS, et al.) where more people than last year are expected to shop these stores for BTS. Why? Drugs stores have expanded their merchandise mix, and customers have noticed. However, the most popular destination for BTS shopping is still the discount store. Almost 75% of shoppers will be shopping discount.
On the other side of the education spectrum – College spending is expected to increase slightly over last year (up 3%) however, fewer people are planning to attend college for advanced degrees so total spending is down. In addition, more kids are planning on living out their college years at home instead of on-campus, which may impact retailers that focus on the Back to dorm segment.
What does this mean for retailers? Time to embrace the new norm if you haven’t already. Give consumers what they are looking for: coupons, sales, BOGOs, and early season specials.
[photo: freedigitalphotos.net]
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