Back-to-school shopping is kicking into high gear as summer winds down—so where are parents shopping, and how much are they spending? A new survey from Gift Card Granny analyzes B2S shopping habits for 2018, examining topics such as budget, shopping preferences, saving strategies and most popular retailers were analyzed.
Among the 2,637 respondents, 54 percent are now shopping, and the majority (53 percent) will be purchasing for their children. Twenty-two percent say they will be shopping for themselves, while 21 percent will buy for someone in their family. Additionally, 4 percent are either purchasing items for a charity or are teachers shopping for their classrooms.
Among those who are buying for their children, the majority (42 percent) are shopping for one child. Thirty-six percent are purchasing for two children and 22 percent are buying for three or more.
Where are we shopping, and what are we buying?
Walmart (51 percent), Target (47 percent), Amazon (37 percent), Kohl’s (37 percent) and Old Navy (31 percent) are the most popular stores for back to school shopping. The most common items that respondents will be buying this year include clothes or shoes (82 percent), folders, binders or notebooks (77 percent) as well as pens and pencils (74 percent). The majority (64 percent) of survey respondents say they shop both in-store and online; 9 percent primarily shop online and 26 percent largely shop in-store.
How much are we spending, and how are we saving?
The survey also asked about budgeting for back to school necessities. Half of respondents (51 percent) claim they stay within their allotted spend. However, 24 percent state they typically exceed their budget, while 25 percent don’t follow a budget. Additionally, 44 percent of respondents will spend between $0 and $150, while 55 percent plan to spend $150 or more.
The top five ways respondents save on back to school shopping include in-store sales (81 percent), coupons or promo codes found online (71 percent), discount gift cards (55 percent), cash-back credit cards/apps/websites (48 percent) and coupons from the local newspaper (45 percent).
August (47 percent) is the most-likely month for back to school shopping followed by July (39 percent) and June (11 percent). Although 65 percent of respondents say they look forward to back to school shopping, 35 percent find it to be a feat they dread.
