According to a new Deloitte survey, nearly nine out of 10 households expect to spend the same or more on back-to-school items this year. Nevertheless, consumers will be very price-sensitive this year, with inflation as a significant concern.
Eighty-six percent of households surveyed by Deloitte expect to spend the same or more on back-to-school items in 2011, though inflation-related concerns could compel them to change their shopping plans. The survey found that 72 percent cited higher food prices while 70 percent cited higher energy prices as reasons they may cut back spending this back-to-school season. Meanwhile, 51 percent cite the lack of improvement in the job market.
The survey also found that 29 percent of consumers say prices on new back-to-school merchandise will be higher than last year, while 65 percent say low prices are the most important retailer attribute for back-to-school shopping.
“Retailers should monitor customers’ reactions closely to recognize where they are flexible, and where promotions are necessary to drive traffic and generate purchases of higher margin products in the store,” said Alison Paul, vice chairman of Deloitte LLP and Deloitte’s retail and distribution sector leader.
Among those surveyed who own Web-enabled smartphones, 64 percent plan to use them for back-to-school shopping purposes, while 61 percent will use their smartphones to find price information. Forty-three percent will download discounts, coupons or sale information to their smartphones.
Thirty-five percent of parents plan to utilize social networking sites to help with their back-to-school shopping this year, up from 29 percent last year.
Of this segment, 69 percent plan to use social networking sites to be alerted to promotions, while 44 percent will use them to browse products, and 28 percent will use them to read reviews and recommendations.
According to the National Retail Federation, families with children in grades K-12 will spend an average of $603.63 on apparel, school supplies and electronics for back-to-school shopping this year, close to the $606.40 average last year. Total spending is expected to reach $22.8 billion.
With combined K-12 and college back-to-school spending expected to reach $68.8 billion this year, back-to-school season will be the second biggest consumer spending event for retailers. The winter holidays is the biggest.
To adjust to the insecurity felt about the economy, 39.9 percent of American consumers will purchase more store-brand or generic items this year, while 29.8 percent will do more comparison shopping online and 50.0 percent will shop for sales.
Sources:
http://www.nrf.com/modules.php?name=News&op=viewlive&sp_id=1157
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