Canadians Continue to Spend More for Back to School Shopping

Poll shows parents plan to spend $183 per child, up from $155 in 2014

TORONTO, July 25, 2017 /CNW/ - Many Canadians may feel a little more stressed than usual as they shell out money for kids heading back to school this season. In fact, expenses and a hectic schedule are the two biggest stressors (29 per cent each) for Canadian parents when it comes to the back-to-school season, according to a recent poll by Ebates.ca.

The poll looked at the buying habits and sentiments of Canadians for back-to-school shopping, one of the largest retail events of the year. "It's a transition time for everyone, including the kids, so making things as easy and stress-free as possible is key," said Belinda Baugniet, director of marketing and resident shopping expert at Ebates.ca. "That includes finding convenient ways to shop and keeping costs down."

Canadians' Shopping Habits
Canadian parents overwhelmingly (97 per cent) say they do things to include their kids in the back-to-school shopping process, from bringing them along in-store (67 per cent), to picking out products (66 per cent) and letting them make the shopping list (58 per cent). Nearly half (47 per cent) of parents are also starting a good financial habit by making their kids aware of the budget.

When it comes to the cost of back-to-school, 72 per cent of parents this year expect to spend more than $100 on back-to-school shopping. On average parents are spending $183, up from $155 in 2014, the last time the study was done. Dads are claiming a more generous spend ($190) than moms ($178), which is in line with previous year trends. As many as 18 per cent plan to spend more than $300.

While supplies remain the most popular (85 per cent) items shopped for, clothing (82 per cent) and footwear (78 per cent) saw the largest jump compared to 2014, followed by backpacks/lunch bags (77 per cent) and electronics (24 per cent).

Ways to Save
Two-thirds (67 per cent) of parents plan to do at least some of their back-to-school shopping online this year, up dramatically from 2014 when only 31 per cent of parents said they'd shop online. Dads (77 per cent) are even more likely to shop online than moms (61 per cent). Parents feel equally that the best prices (39 per cent) and offers (39 per cent) can be found online, while 38 per cent prefer the ease and convenience of shopping online. These figures climbed to just over half for parents who actually do some of their shopping online.

And when it comes to trying to keep costs down, those parents who are online shopping for back-to-school have several tricks up their sleeve to ensure that they get the best possible online deals, including:

• 69 per cent search retailer websites for deals
• 46 per cent search for online coupons/promo codes
• 33 per cent sign up for email notification of sales/promotions
• 32 per cent use cash back websites
• 28 per cent use mobile apps to find deals
• 28 per cent use social media to find deals

Weighing The Benefits
Despite the costs, there are upsides to kids going back to school. Thirty-five per cent of parents say the best aspect of back-to-school season is having their kids on a regular schedule again, while 29 per cent say it's getting the kids back into a learning environment. Fourteen per cent agree equally that not having to find ways to keep the kids entertained, and having an easier-to-manage schedule/work schedule are the best part. Meanwhile, eight per cent admit that just getting the kids out of the house is the best aspect of back to school.

About the survey The Ebates Canada survey was conducted online in July 2017 with a nationally representative sample of 1,004 Canadians. A sample of this size is accurate to within +/-3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

About Ebates Inc. The Ebates brand supports a strong community of millions of savvy shoppers around the world. Ebates.com was founded in 1998 and has paid over $300,000,000 in cash to its global members. In 2012, Ebates began international expansion with the launch of Ebates Canada, specifically designed by Canadians for Canadians. Ebates.ca membership is free. To earn Cash Back, online shoppers log in to Ebates.ca and click through to a partner retail site to complete their purchase. Ebates.ca then tracks the purchase and offers back in cash a percentage of everything bought. Every quarter, Ebates.ca sends members their Cash Back account balance in the form of a #BigFatCheque or #BigFatPayment through PayPal. Members also have the option to send their Cash Back to a designated charity.

SOURCE Ebates Canada

Federica Maraboli, 647-228-3844, [email protected]