Back to school shopping is typically a lucrative time for retailers but this year Ipsos Reid has released an interesting poll on how our spending may be changing. While the downturn in the economy is not drastically changing overall back to school spending -- it may be affecting how consumers plan to shop.
- 84 per cent of those surveyed say they will more actively look for sales
- 78 per cent say they plan to reuse back to school items
- 71 per cent plan to buy more store brand or generic products
- 61 per cent will use more coupons.
Only one third of people polled say they'll shop at thrift stores or consignment shops. But they may be missing out on some real bargains - like clothes that have been never or just barely worn .
To save money on back to school shopping start with a list-- including prices from flyers and where you've found them. Then stick to the list buying the essentials.
Do your comparison shopping in the flyers -- and look at all the flyers. Some unusual places like a hardware store may bring in school supplies as a loss leader to get some foot traffic.
And when shopping bring your list with you and do some on site comparison shopping -- there may be unadvertised specials....or a store's regular price may be better than another's advertized price.
One final thing to keep in mind -- no store can have the best price on absolutely everything.
For those without kids --looking to cash in on this season's bargains -- this is one of the best times of year to buy a computer because of all those students heading to university. Prices are lower and you'll often get extras like programs or printers thrown in.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Chris Olsen
