Desperate Parents Considering Dumpster Diving and Theft to Afford Their Kids’ School Supplies

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by StudyFinds.

How are families faring in the U.S. economy this year? A concerning new poll finds that the answer could be summed up in one word — desperation. Three in four parents say they would try “any” workaround they could find to save some money on school supplies for their children—with some even dumpster diving and stealing from work!

A survey of 2,000 U.S. parents of elementary school kids found 77% believe staying under their budget is a top priority for them. The top resources parents have used to keep their back-to-school shopping under control include purchasing school supplies whenever they go on sale, even after back-to-school season (49%), and shopping at multiple stores for the best deals (45%).

The survey also revealed that many others said they’d also try to save money by even wilder means. These desperate parents would try hoarding school supplies throughout the year (37%), shopping exclusively when there’s a deal (34%), extreme couponing (22%), looking for half-used items around the home (16%),  joining buy-nothing groups on social media (10%), trading supplies with other parents (9%), and dumpster diving (5%). Another 12% admitted to stealing supplies from their workplace so their kids could use them as school supplies.

While two in three parents reported feeling prepared for back-to-school shopping this year, the results also found 82% believe the cost of supplies has increased in the past year, especially for clothing (59%), shoes (51%), backpacks (50%), and school uniforms (26%).

On average, parents anticipate spending $280 on supplies this year.

Source: StudyFinds
https://studyfinds.org/desperate-parents-school-supplies/