Back-to-School Shopping: It Goes Deeper Than You Think

In the aisle of Best Buy, Maggie and her soon off-to-college daughter, Christina, are in a deep discussion about when and what she’ll cook in her dorm room and what kind of equipment would best suit her needs. As they consider different products, they’re both envisioning the life Christina will have in her first year away from home–and it’s soothing.

In shared online experiences and in malls and stores everywhere, similar discussions are taking place with kids of all grades. Moving from one grade to the next is a rite of passage. And back-to-school shopping prepares kids and parents by helping them visualize and anticipate the future.

On the surface, back-to-school shopping seems simply like an exercise in selecting merchandise. But the reason that both parents and kids have described this as richly satisfying to me is because that process of imagining and discussing the future is exactly the psychological preparation everyone needs as kids transition from one grade to the next or leave home for the first time.

But not every family is getting that psychological opportunity. Some shoppers are so obsessed with bargain hunting and so afraid of missing better offers they’ve diverted their attention from the transition to the transaction. Indeed, one of the most frequently mentioned sources of back-to-school shopping stress is “finding good deals.” Not, as has been the case in previous years, “finding the right products,” or “having time to shop.”

Everyone wants to save money and this can certainly be an expensive buying season. The National Retail Federation found that the average spent per child on back-to-school supplies (including clothing, shoes and technology) this year is $685, and that figure is closer to $1000 for college bound kids. But considering the abundance of deals offered by nearly every major retailer, “finding good deals” should not be an attention-diverting issue.

My research finds that excessive bargain hunting is more about winning than shopping for the right product at the right price. And it’s a distraction from carefully evaluating and selecting products. The biggest spending gaffes consumers make are typically bargain buys. But when it comes to back-to-school shopping the loss is even greater than an unworn sweater–it’s a lost opportunity to ease a transition and bolster that parent/child connection.

Back-to-school shopping is about much more than the thrill of finding the perfect new backpack, it’s emotional preparation. I hope parents won’t let bargain hunting distract them from what’s really important.