As kids start saying goodbye to summer vacation and hello to textbooks, their families will be spending a lot on back-to-school items.
The National Retail Foundation released its back-to-school survey for 2016, in which they say over $75 billion is expected to be spent on back-to-school items this year. Families, on average, will be spending $674 for their supplies, up from $630 last year.
While discount and department stores remained the most popular places for shoppers to purchase back-to-school items in 2016, this year also saw a big increase in how many people will be doing shopping online. Most shoppers plan to make their purchases three weeks to one month before school starts.
It isn't just parents who will be spending a lot of money on back-to-school. Many teenagers and preteens are also contributing to their school shopping. The average amount a teenager will spend on back-to-school is $33 and for preteens its $20, according to the National Retail Foundation.
With all this spending, back-to-school has become a massive shopping event, with only the winter holidays surpassing it.