41% of shoppers are waiting to "make a purchase"! The peak of back-to-school consumption is coming!

According to a survey conducted by NPD Group, continued price increases and a desire for discounts and deals have caused American consumers to put their back-to-school shopping plans on hold.

Data shows that in the first seven weeks of the back-to-school shopping season, sales of non-school supplies in the United States increased by 4%, but sales of school supplies did not reach last year's level.

According to a survey by the NPD Group, 41% of back-to-school shoppers are still waiting for the opportunity to "make a move", and they expect retailers to offer more offers and bigger discounts.

Marshal Cohen, chief retail consultant at NPD, said consumers are balancing time to return to school, work and social activities while retaining their consumption habits during the pandemic and focusing on necessities. This has delayed the peak of back-to-school shopping and the back-to-school shopping season will become longer.

The categories with the most significant sales growth in the early 2022 back-to-school shopping season are portable beverage containers, coloring and art supplies. In addition, sales in the beauty and auto parts categories are also strong, which means that consumers are still spending most of their money on non-school supplies.

“As consumers continue to spend on summer entertainment and back-to-school shopping has yet to reach its peak, retailers will need to leverage more aggressive promotions to drive sales and entice back-to-school shoppers to make purchases,” added Marshal Cohen.

Back-to-school spending in the U.S. will hit a record high in 2019, expected to reach $74 billion, up from $71 billion last year, according to the latest research from the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.

Editor ✎ Nicole/

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