The start of the school year is quickly approaching, and with it, parents need to begin thinking hard about what their back-to-school budget might be.
A recent survey by RetailMeNot.ca says Canadians plan to spend a whopping $883 on getting their family prepared for the school year — $325 more than what they spent on holiday gifts last year.
“I spend more than I probably should. I’m one of those people who buys more than I need to,” said back-to-school shopper Marissa Phillips. “I’ve done some clothes shopping in the past couple weeks — I’ve spent probably about $600.”
Another mother CHEX News spoke with said she she usually spends about $200 on each of her three children for the start of the school year.
“The university student costs us more for sure in terms of calculators, and computers and supplies. The high school kids don’t need maybe that much yet,” Julie Ferrari said.
The online survey was conducted among 1519 randomly selected Canadians. It revealed that 53 per cent of Canadian parents agree that back-to-school shopping puts a financial strain on their families, and it can take months to pay off the bills.
“I can absolutely see where it would set you back,” Ferrari says. “I think you have to plan for it, absolutely if it’s something that is going to put a strain — it’s another chunk of money that you can expect to pay.”
The survey also showed that more than half of Canadian parents end up spending more than they had planned and parents care more about getting their kids what they need — or want — rather than saving money.
83 per cent of parents agreed that back-to-school shopping is getting more and more expensive as their kids are asking for all the latest products when it comes to technology, clothes and accessories.
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