It's the end of the summer holidays, and with covid, under control, it is very likely that the kids will be heading back to school. But unfortunately, supply chain issues and recession have the prices shooting for stars. According to Forbes, parents will spend 1000$ of their money on their kids back to school supplies, and teachers spend 500$ additional on school supplies.
Plan Ahead Of Time:
There are several advantages to planning ahead of time and before you head out to shop. Not only does it save you time while shopping as you know exactly what to look for, but it also stops you from going over the planned budget. Most Schools will provide a supplies list of essentials for your kids, and if they have not yet, you can always look at the last year's list of supplies as many items do not change, and most are likely to stay the same. You might need to add essentials such as lunch boxes, backpacks, shoes, and in some instances, a uniform if your kid wears one to School.
Shop In Advance And Check Deals Online:
Most stores will have back-to-school sales, including big departmental stores, such as Walmart, Home Depot, Target, and even the dollar store, which all have sales going on in their online stores. Coupon websites like digmycart.com compile discount and promo codes for such sites for you to use. Just a mere amount of search and several minutes of scrolling can help you save a fortune.
Be Smart For The Stores You Opt For:
You might have already known this, but there are several discounts that will offer you significant discounts on certain items only to get you in the store. This is known as the "loss leaders" strategy. Such as the "Rotisserie chicken" still costs 4.99 $ just to draw people into the stores. However, this is just one example. If you know your shopping list, you might hit the store with several items on your shopping list being used as loss leaders. Eventually, leading you to save bucks on each item purchased.
Make The Most Of Tax-Free Holidays:
If you are lucky enough to live in a state that offers tax-free holidays, you can save on kids' clothing, supplies, and even several pieces of equipment. Because of the removal, sales, which in accumulation can be over hundreds of dollars, can be written off on these holidays. These days in some states start as early as July and end up in August. Not sure whether your state falls on the list? Check the list below.
Alabama: July 15-17
Arkansas: August 6-7
Connecticut: August 21-27
Florida Dates: July 25-August 7
Illinois Dates: August 5 -August 14
Iowa Dates: August 5-6
Maryland Dates: August 14-20
Massachusetts: August 13-14
Mississippi: July 29-30
Missouri: August 5-7
New Mexico: August 5-7
Ohio: August 5-7
Oklahoma: August 5-7
South Carolina: August 5-7
Tennessee: July 29 – July 31
Texas: August 5-7
Virginia: August 5-7
West Virginia: August 5-8
Buying Checklist For Back-To-School Shopping:
If your little ones or even grown-up kids are heading back to School and you have not received any checklist from the School yet, shopping for school essentials can quickly get cumbersome and exhausting. To keep you stress-free, we have compiled a checklist, which covers almost every aspect, from dormitory supplies to back-to-school outfits. Regardless of their grade, the list caters to every kid whether they are heading to play School or high school, and is a one-stop solution for your school supply needs.
Ink Cartridges
Laptop Bag
Lunch Box
Posted Notes
Binder
A Bag For Gym
Athletic Socks
Graph Papers
Folders
Clipper /Ballpoint pens
Stationery Box
Calculator
Calendar
Highlighters
Erasers
Hole-punch
Protractor
White-out
Laptop (obviously)
Glue stick
Notebooks
Sticky notes
Mechanical Pencil
New Slick Sneaker
Don't Waste Money On This Stuff:
Often School sends a list to every student containing 50 other different items. Before you head to one of the departmental stores or browse for items online Some of which you might have from last year, look in the basement and search around your house for essentials or items that can be reused, such as binders, folders, a stash of pencils and even sharpies that we never brought to use previous year. It could be any number of items on the list.
Clip Boards
Backpacks
Better Versions of existing items
Whiteouts
Upgraded Lunch Boxes
Number of multi-subject notebooks
New Gym Shoes.
Summing Up:
Back-to-school shopping can be an educational experience for your kids and can be a great way to teach them the value of money. While many kids might be reluctant to take the old supplies to School, You can tell them they can use the money saved for something they really like.
Even though the deals on back to School are live and you might think that it is the best time to purchase, and that's what your coupons will tell you as well, only purchasing essentials for the first few weeks and purchasing the rest of the items later down the road, can eventually help you save a fortune.
