A recent survey, conducted by BIGresearch for the NRF,
found that nearly every family with school-aged children intends to purchase clothes, shoes,
and school supplies this year, with almost half of consumers (41.7%)
planning to buy electronics or computer-related equipment as well. This year, the
average consumer plans to spend $219.46 on clothing, $89.72 on shoes, and $73.06 on school supplies. Families will also spend about 15 percent more ($101.03 vs. $86.03)
on electronics and computer-related equipment than they did last year.
Some parents began their back-to-school shopping before their kids were barely out of school. Nearly one in six consumers (15.1%) started back-to-school shopping at least two months before school starts. More commonly, parents start shopping three
weeks to one month before school begins (40.9%) or one to two weeks before (34.6%). Only 2.8 percent will wait until school starts to begin shopping for back-to-school items.
