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Home > Blogs > Here's the Deal: Bargains in Hamilton and Middletown > Archives > 2009 > August > 02 > Entry
Save on back-to-school
Mary Hinkel always dreads the rush and stress of back-to-school shopping. But this year, it’s worse: she can’t afford new bookbags.
“That’s the thing every year, the kids have new bookbags,” the Middletown mother of two said. “And I really just can’t afford the ones they want.”
After cruising the ads for sales and visiting the thrift stores, Hinkel said she finally decided to dig out last year’s bags and give them a good wash. She got iron-on patches of her kids’ favorite TV characters and put them over any unsightly areas, then deemed the bags ready to go.
“This cost me about $10 total,” she said. “And they look as good as new and are very unique. It’s just one of the ways I am saving money.”
Hinkel isn’t the only one pinching pennies. According the National Retail Federation, back-to-school spending is set to slip 7.7 percent this year.
Job losses and cash-strapped consumers are expected to cut back by about $45 this year, for the average family with students in kindergarten through high school. The average per-family expenditure for back-to-school spending will be about $548.72, according to the federation.
“There’s not a lot to be excited about,” said George Whalin, president of Retail Management Consultants. “It’s going to be very challenging for retail, for a long time.”
According to the report, 56.2 percent of parents said they are looking for sales more often, while 49.6 percent planned to spend less overall. About two in five said they would purchase more store-brand products and use more coupons.
But consumers are warned not too wait too long for mark-down sales, as stores have ordered less stock than in past years to meet with the reduced demand.
“Retail has been dealt a big blow, but they’ve gotten good at this,” Whalin said. “They’re prepared for down months, so we don’t see the piles of supply that we saw a few years ago. Consumers need to get in and buy before it’s gone.”
Ways to save
Some retailers are catching on to customers’ financial needs and are offering back-to-school freebies to entice them into their doors.
Kmart is giving free back-to-school items to shoppers with purchase. Through Aug. 1, shoppers can receive free color pencils; through Aug. 8 they will receive a 70-page theme book; through Aug. 15 they will receive woodcase pencils; through Aug. 22 it’s free Kleenex and through Aug. 29 shoppers receive a free sharpie.
Besides reusing school supplies from last year, “which are as good as new in a lot of cases,” Hamilton resident Jessica Berkley said drug stores like CVS are offering “extra care bucks” where you can receive the amount of the school supplies you buy back in coupons to use on your next order.
“I will buy pencils, get the (Extra Care Bucks) back and then use that coupon to buy pens, get the (Extra Care Bucks) again, and use that on the next item,” she said. “I end up spending only about $5 on a ton of supplies that way.”
It’s all about coordination, Berkley said.
A Web site that can help residents coordinate sales and savings is Mommysnacks.net, which is run by Monroe resident Andrea Deckard. This site coordinates sales at Walgreens, CVS and Office Max.
Cincinnati Cents, another savings Web site at cincinnaticents.blogspot.com, is coordinating the back-to-school sales of multiple bloggers. Find the deals at Target, CVS, Walgreens, Meijer, Office Max, Walmart and Staples.
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