Back to School Shopping Tips
By: Teagan Jackett
That time of year is coming up again! Back to school shopping can be extremely stressful and costly, but buying the supplies your child needs to ace the semester doesn’t have to be expensive. These tips will help you stay calm and on budget.
Pro Tip #1 - Before you hit the stores, make sure to check for unused school supplies from previous years. After a long summer, it’s tempting to just buy all of your school supplies to start fresh, but if you take stock of what you already have, you may just realize that you already have half of it!
Start by going through all of your child’s clothes. Have them try on clothes that look too small and tight. Donate clothes that are too small or are never worn. Make a list of your children's sizes; this is especially helpful if you have more than one child or if you are shopping without your children. It can be helpful to set a budget for clothing expenses. Your children are still growing and chances are that what you buy at the beginning of the year will no longer fit them at the end of it, so shop at stores like TJ maxx and Target for great savings and current styles! Some lesser known stores where you can score amazing deals is Gabe’s and Foreman Mills; in fact, the latter has school uniform clothing for as low as $3 right now, which becomes even lower when you sign up for their mailing list and get a 10% off coupon!
Pro Tip #2 - Our next pro tip is to get a good quality generic backpack! Getting a good quality, solid color or simple pattern like this Jansport bag enables your child to use the same backpack for a few years; do you really want to buy a dinosaur bag that your son is going to grow out of a year later? The same is true for lunch boxes; neutral and well made is our best bet to avoid short-term use and wasted money, not to mention the negative environmental impacts of producing and consuming products temporarily, then buying new ones.
Pro Tip #3 - Be sure to print your child's back to school shopping list or keep a picture on your phone to ensure that you get everything they will need, so be prepared to shop at multiple stores to save the most money. For many of you, you may be thinking time is money, so it will be important to do a little advance planning so you can maximize both your time and money! First, do your research and look for stores that price match items found online, like Target and Staples. Often using store apps allows you to find the best prices and discounts or utilize app-based coupon codes. Trouble finding coupons? No problem, Retail Me Not can help! Walmart Savings Catcher is great for price adjustments. ShopSavvy is a great for a quick price comparison across many stores and downloading the PricePulse App will send you notifications when items in your amazon cart go down!
Lastly, we’d be remiss if we didn’t at least mention one important part of planning -- deciding if you are bringing the kids or not, which is going to depend on your own time constraints and your kids’ ages & ability to go from store to store. No matter what you decide, make it an intentional decision so you can save money and potential aggravation. If you know your troop is going to slow you down and make shopping nearly impossible, ask a friend or family member to watch them for you so you can get to business, then do the same for them when it’s their turn to go school shopping! Remember, it takes a village so don’t forget to reach out to yours!
With a little planning, your child will be ready for school at little financial and (hopefully) mental cost to you! You can do it mama!