Picture by brentdanley
“Back to School” sales have got off to a slow start this year, according to an article in the Chicago Tribune on August 5 of this year. Retailers were counting on “brisk sales of apparel, backpacks and school supplies” to help pull them out of their sales slumps. There were many factors that they used to blame for this slow start — consumer frugality, poor economic conditions, and the hot weather.
CONSUMER FRUGALITY
So it’s the frugal people of the world that have caused slow sales. Anyone who knows about “frugal consumers” knows that we are going to wait and look for the BEST deals instead of going out and impulse shopping. We’ve trained ourselves to not act on impulse. The first sales of the season are not always the best sales of the season. We are going to look for coupons that can go with any sales. We are going to wait for the best reduction in prices. That’s just how we are and we’re not going to feel bad about it.
POOR ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
Of course, poor economic conditions are going to play a part in “slow sales”. It’s a given. If a person is out of a job and not sure about their own “economic” future, then that person is not going to go out on a shopping spree and spend all their money at the beginning of a shopping season knowing that markdowns could occur later in the season. It goes back to being “frugal”. They are going to wait and look for the best sales.
HOT WEATHER
I’m sure that the extremely hot temperatures have kept some people home but “the hot weather has kept some shoppers at the beach” instead of buying their kids school supplies? I can hear little Tommy telling his teacher “I don’t have my school supplies. My mom was at the beach all day and didn’t go get my supplies.” And believe me… they will tell…I used to be a substitute elementary school teacher and there were all kinds of stories that little kids would tell. Maybe some people really do stay at the beach and not take care of their kids back to school needs. Who knows? Weirder things have happened!
What’s your thoughts about frugality being blamed for the slow sales start? How do you think economic conditions are impacting the sales trends? What about the beach — do you really think parents are staying at the beach and not shopping for their kids school needs? Do parents of young kids even have a list of school supplies by the beginning of August? It’s been a long time since I’ve had a small child in school. My son is a senior in high school and they don’t get their “lists” until the first day of school. Leave us a comment and let us know.
Till next time,
JT Locke
The Frugal Housewife
About The Frugal Housewife
(Erects her “I’m Frugal and Proud of it!” picket sign)
I think a lot of people don’t want to deal with school starting. That’s my story. I don’t want to deal with it. However, I did drop roughly $70 at Target yesterday. And I still have more to spend. I figured I’d split up the payment/stress of fighting the crowds.
I’m not sure it’s frugality as much as it is poverty. I am waiting because I can’t afford to buy everything on the list, and the list is so long. I can get the necessities but the extras I can’t so I wait until the last minute and then decide if my kid is getting a new pair of shoes or a set of dry erase markers and three reams of paper (no lie they are on the list). The heat would have compelled me to go to the mall if I could afford it, anything to get out of the heat.
I don’t like the crowds either! One of the perks of having a kid that is a senior is that he goes and picks out his own stuff. The part of the article that got me was that they made the statement that people were going to the beach instead of buying supplies. I thought that was a bit of a reach for an explanation of what was going on.
Last year we had a BIG supply list and this year it’s less than half. I think that’s why I haven’t done anything yet. I ordered everything online from Office Max last year and it was nice getting everything in one box. This year the order wouldn’t be big enough to qualify for free shipping so that deal is off. I’ll get around to it:)
As a parent, go to the beach is the last thing on my mind in August. I would much rather sit at home and watch a dvd than go to a crowded beach.
As for the shopping list, I keep on entering different sweepstakes for Office Depot and Staples hoping that it will help out with some of the costs.