It’s that time again: or wait, is it? Summer just started, but from a retail perspective, the back-to-school season is already beginning. Staples Canada has conducted a national survey to provide some key insights of what to expect as the season reaches its peak by next month and into early September.
The 2024 Staples Back to School Study, which surveyed parents across Canada, finds that most plan to shop for back-to-school in physical bricks-and-mortar stores versus online. Half of parents surveyed plan to do most if not all of their shopping in stores, while 88% say at least half of their shopping will be done in store.
Despite the common belief that parents use back-to-school shopping as a family affair, a fun outing, that isn’t necessarily the case. Busy families have things to do, and they want back-to-school shopping to be quick and efficient. The majority (88%) say they want to shop this way, while 70% even admit that back-to-school shopping is classified as a chore.
Not surprisingly, Canadians are looking for deals on the top tech. Speaking of which, more than half (59%) say tech is among the top three biggest affordability challenges. Thus, deals, promotions, and financing options on larger-ticket items will be appealing.
What about AI? Parents say they will be more comfortable with their kids using the technology if schools specifically review and approve it. In fact, their comfort doubles in this situation for parents of kids aged 13-17 and triples for kids aged 6-12. Most parents, however, admit that they have a lot to learn themselves about AI and how it works: only a third feel that they are well-informed, another third say they know little to nothing, and the rest fall in the middle.
Along with offering its own selection of deals and promotions for the back-to-school season, Staples Canada has partnered with GeekSpeak Commerce this year to create the ‘Backpack Challenge,’ a unique Augmented Reality (AR) experience tailored to children aged 6 to 11 to make Back to School shopping fun for kids and easy for parents. The in-store game, played on mobile devices, transforms Staples stores into an interactive playground. Kids are given the chance to embark on a digital adventure, with different quests to locate and collect hidden animals and add them to their virtual backpack. Parents and kids can access the game during their Back to School shopping trips, keep an eye out for QR code signage in store to join in on the fun.
The survey was conducted by Staples Canada from June 25 to 28, 2024 among a representative sample of 1,008 parents with kids aged 6 to 17 within Canada. Respondents are members of Angus Reid Forum. The survey was conducted in English and French.