When people think of finances they rarely equate back to school shopping with investment or even as a viable financial topic of discussion. Yet when you stop and actually think of the vast amount of money that is spent every single year in every single community across the U.S and Canada and many other developed countries you soon realize that it truly is a massive industry that is worth many millions and possibly even billions in earnings for the companies smart enough to get on board.
The fact that most of the products involved are either fully consumable and need to be replaced every single year like pencils and pens or things that either wear out or get outgrown like the clothes and shoes that our kids wear every day. There are some ways that the consumer can save a few bucks when beginning their back to school shopping. One of the first things you should always do is to do a good inventory of the items that you thinking of replacing. Do the kids really need to have new pencils and pens when they still have a huge supply form the previous year? Many parents simply think that they need new stuff every year and for some items that is simply not true.
Check the pencil case and see what is there and then decide if there is a necessity for new items. The same goes for clothes and shoes. Yes, we all want to buy new stuff for the 1st day back to school and there is nothing wrong with buying a new pair of shoes and an outfit for the first day but do you really need to buy a whole new wardrobe for that school year?. If the child has grown exponentially then obviously they will need to get everything they require but for the most part anything that fit at the end of the previous year will most likely fit at the beginning of the next one.
Buy the required 1st day outfit and shoes and then buy some items that will allow you to mix and match the old with the new instead of just buying an entire new wardrobe unnecessarily. The same goes with the back packs and lunch bags. If they are still in very good shape then what is the problem with using them again? It comes down to the old “need” versus “want”.
The things you really need are the ones you should purchase. The things that are simply WANTS can wait for another day. Stick to this formula and you will save a huge amount of money that can be spent in other places.
