Back-to-school and college season is retail's second biggest shopping event of the year. The National Retail Federation is predicting a combined spend of over $135B this year as students of all ages prepare to head back to the classroom. $41.5B is slated to be spent on back-to-school (BtS) in 2023, up +12% from 2022. Back-to-college (BtC) shopping is expected to be even bigger, hitting $94B up +27% year-over-year.
BtS shoppers are planning to spend an average of $890 per household, up +$26, while BtC shoppers are slated to spend $1,367 per household, up +$168. As expected, both BtS and BtC consumers will be spending the most on electronics in preparation for the new school year. Electronics are forecast to see solid growth among shoppers, up +11% for BtS and +12% for BtC. College shoppers are showing a similar increase in spend on dorm/apartment furnishings (+12%), but their largest year-over-year increase is on food items (+29%).
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67% of all back-to-class shoppers have noticed higher prices this year, and are more likely to be taking cost saving measures, compared to 2022 and 2021 - including comparative shopping, shopping more sales, and buying more store brand or generic products. Back-to-college shoppers also report shopping more online this year due to the economy.
WHERE AND HOW CONSUMERS SPEND
The NRF finds that online is the top source of back-to-school and back-to-college shopping, sought out by half of all shoppers. Discount and department stores round out the top 3 for both sets of shoppers. Local businesses are chosen by just over 1 in 10 BtS and BtC shoppers.
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RADIO DELIVERS REACH, IMPACT, AND ROAS FOR RETAILERS
The NRF finds that 41% of back-to-class shoppers expect to receive their school shopping lists by the end of July, meaning there is still time to influence much of their back-to-school spending throughout August. Local radio is a valuable asset for retailers looking to influence those back-to-school and back-to-college dollars. It delivers high reach among parents and students in local markets across the country and is proven to impact consumer behavior, leading to +20% lifts in online search activity and store traffic (RAB studies). And radio delivers an average $12 return for every dollar spent on ads, including larger returns for back-to-school retail sectors - mass merchandisers, department stores, electronics retailers, home stores, and more (Nielsen ROAS studies).
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For more information from the National Retail Federation