Table of Contents
Overview
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- What you need to know
- Definition
Executive Summary
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- Overview
- The issues
- How effective are advertisements?
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- Figure 1: Shopping influencers - parents and college students, November 2017
- Traditional retailers are losing some back-to-school shoppers to mass merchants including Amazon
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- Figure 2: Retailers shopped- parents and college students, November 2017
- The opportunities
- Engage with young shoppers to foster long-term relationships
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- Figure 3: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping - college students, November 2017
- Appeal to multicultural shoppers
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- Figure 4: Shopping participation - parents, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2017
- Rethink the shopping timeline
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Back-to-college spending drives the market, but K-12 spending also on the rise
- The evolving BTS shopper
- Positive enrollment levels could aid positive spending
Market Size
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- Bucking the trend, consumers expect to increase spending for the second year in a row
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- Figure 5: Consumers' planned back-to-school (K-12) spending, in current dollars, 2012-17
- Anticipated college spending also goes against cycle
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- Figure 6: Consumers' planned back-to-college spending, in current dollars, 2012-17
Market Factors
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- Higher confidence, lower unemployment paint an optimistic picture
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- Figure 7: Consumer confidence and unemployment, 2000 - November 2017
- A changing population creates diversified needs
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- Figure 8: Households, by presence of own children, 2006-16
- Figure 9: Households with related children, by race and Hispanic origin of householder, 2016
- Decline in younger education enrollment could signal a possible threat
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- Figure 10: School enrollment of the population 3 Years Old and Over: 2012-16
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- Deal-seeking behavior dominates back-to-school season, but parents and college students demonstrate different priorities
- Promotional timing and marketing mix represent areas for reconsideration
- Evolving the back-to-school shopping experience
What’s Happening?
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- Key shopping differences exist between parents and college students
- Retailers Shopped
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- Figure 11: Retailers shopped - parents versus college students, November 2017
- Items to Purchase
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- Figure 12: Top three items to purchase - parents versus college students, November 2017
- Attitudes toward Back-to-School Shopping
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- Figure 13: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping- parents versus college students, November 2017
- Improvements
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- Figure 14: Improvements - parents versus college students, November 2017
- Social media playing a larger role
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- Figure 15: JCPenney pair up campaign, August 2017
- Figure 16: Kohl’s back-to-school shopping challenge, August 2017
What’s Struggling?
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- Advertisements have less influence on shopping decisions
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- Figure 17: Shopping influencers - parents and college students, November 2017
- An issue with timing
What’s Next?
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- A rapid move toward mobile
- Is new really better?
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- Figure 18: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, college students, November 2017
- Incorporating children into the shopping process
- The effects of a changing retail landscape
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Shopping participation is high, with few changes expected
- Consumers are increasingly heading online for BTS needs
- Different requirements result in different purchase priorities among parents and college students
- College students are more likely to shop with a budget-conscious attitude
- Promotions and recommendations are more influential than brands and advertisements
- Parents and students have a desire for deals
Shopping Participation (K-12)
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- Majority of parents are conducting back-to-school shopping, with few changes expected for 2018
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- Figure 19: Shopping participation, November 2017
- Shopping for milestone years takes a priority for parents
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- Figure 20: Shopping participation, by children’s grade level, November 2017
- Moms are more engaged than dads in shopping for younger children
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- Figure 21: Shopping participation, by parental status, November 2017
- Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Black consumers are having more children and are shopping more as a result
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- Figure 22: Shopping participation, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2017
Shopping Participation (College)
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- Virtually all college students shop for back-to-school, but fewer plan to do so in the upcoming year
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- Figure 23: Shopping participation, November 2017
- Female undergrads and male grad students most likely to anticipate spending for future BTS season
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- Figure 24: Shopping participation, full-time versus part-time students, November 2017
- Online students could have less reasons to shop
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- Figure 25: Shopping participation, select demographics, November 2017
- Participation differences versus parents
Retailers Shopped (K-12)
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- Nearly all parents shop in stores but more are shifting online
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- Figure 26: Retailers shopped, November 2017
- Younger parents are turning to mass for BTS needs
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- Figure 27: Retailers shopped, by gender and age, November 2017
- Amazon and electronics stores are popular destinations for dads
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- Figure 28: Select retailers shopped, by parental status, November 2017
- Black Non-Hispanic parents shop around, Hispanic parents prefer mass and Amazon
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- Figure 29: Retailers shopped, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2017
- Parents describe their preferred places to shop back-to-school
Retailers Shopped (College)
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- College students are increasingly shopping online for BTS needs
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- Figure 30: Retailers shopped, November 2017
- Female students prefer mass merchandisers
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- Figure 31: Retailers shopped, by gender, November 2017
- Amazon has universal appeal
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- Figure 32: Amazon shoppers, by select demographics, November 2017
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- Figure 33: Amazon Prime student email, November 2017
- Figure 34: Amazon Prime student email, November 2017
- Differences in retailers shopped versus parents
Items to Purchase (K-12)
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- Apparel & accessories, individual school supplies are a priority for parents
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- Figure 35: Items to purchase, November 2017
- Dads are buying electronics and sporting equipment for older kids
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- Figure 36: Items to purchase, by select demographics, November 2017
- Non-Hispanic Black and Asian parents also focus on other purchases
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- Figure 37: Items to purchase, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2017
Items to Purchase (College)
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- School supplies outrank clothes for college students
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- Figure 38: Items to purchase, November 2017
- Men prioritize electronics, while women spend across categories
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- Figure 39: Items to purchase, by gender, November 2017
- Less affluent students often reuse items, which means spending is prioritized on items requiring replenishment
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- Figure 40: Items to purchase, by household income, November 2017
- Differences in prioritized purchases versus parents
Attitudes toward Back-to-School Shopping (K-12)
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- As parents and children age, they care more about buying new and getting the right items
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- Figure 41: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, by gender and age of children, November 2017
- Young moms prefer to be strategic with back-to-school shopping
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- Figure 42: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, by gender and age, November 2017
- Moms versus dads: Price versus quality
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- Figure 43: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, parental status, November 2017
- Thoughts on timing
Attitudes toward Back-to-School Shopping (College)
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- College students like to plan ahead and recycle items
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- Figure 44: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, November 2017
- Female students are strategic and thrifty
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- Figure 45: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, by gender, November 2017
- Many full-time students are buying their own supplies and are motivated by price
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- Figure 46: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, full-time versus part-time student, November 2017
- Hispanic students are buying new, but sticking to their budgets
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- Figure 47: Attitudes toward back-to-school shopping, by Hispanic origin, November 2017
- Attitudinal differences versus parents
Shopping Influencers (K-12)
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- Children, school recommendations, and promotions are top shopping influencers
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- Figure 48: Shopping influencers, November 2017
- Older children influence parents’ purchase decisions
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- Figure 49: Shopping influence of children, by gender and age of child, November 2017
- Older dads influenced by recommendations, while younger moms swayed by promotions
- Advertisements prove to be influential with Black Non-Hispanic and Hispanic parents
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- Figure 50: Shopping influencers, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2017
- In their own words
Shopping Influencers (College)
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- Brands, prices, and peers more influential to college students than ads
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- Figure 51: Shopping influencers, November 2017
- A number of factors influence female students; men turn to ads
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- Figure 52: Shopping influencers, by gender, November 2017
- Differences in shopping influencers versus parents
Improvements (K-12)
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- What parents want: free shipping and savings
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- Figure 53: Improvements, November 2017
- Younger moms seek promotions and coupons, while younger dads desire alternative options
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- Figure 54: Improvements, by gender and age, November 2017
- Hispanic parents want more options
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- Figure 55: Improvements, by Hispanic origin, November 2017
Improvements (College)
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- What college student doesn’t want a deal?
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- Figure 56: Improvements, November 2017
- Women want deals and flexibility; men want free shipping and trade-in options
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- Figure 57: Improvements, by gender, November 2017
- Full-time students looking to save time and money
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- Figure 58: Improvements, full-time versus part-time students, November 2017
- Differences in desired improvements versus parents
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Sales data
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Direct marketing creative
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
Appendix – The Market
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- Figure 59: Consumers' planned back-to-school spending (K-12), in inflation-adjusted dollars, 2012-17
- Figure 60: Consumers' planned back-to-college spending, in inflation-adjusted dollars, 2012-17
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- Figure 61: Population by race and Hispanic origin, 2012-22
- Figure 62: Unemployment and Hispanic unemployment rate, October 2017
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- Figure 63: Median household income, by race and Hispanic origin of householder, 2016
- Figure 64: Population by age, 2012-22
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