5 Ways to Save for Back to School Shopping
It feels like summer just began, but now here in SC, we are only a month away from school starting. Our oldest finished her first year of public high school (10th grade) in early June, and now it’s already almost mid-July! This summer is flying by, and it’s almost time to start shopping for school supplies for the next school year! Now to be fair, I have to share that we are still a homeschool family of 3 (the younger three kids still homeschool), and the older one tried public school. So most of our years as a homeschool family of 4, we didn’t do your traditional back to school shopping! However in years past, we did homeschool coops and academies where we had a back to school supply lists, and with 4 kids, supplies were a lot! So I had to learn how to get creative when it came to saving for back to school supplies! So here are my tips for back to school shopping
Make a plan and budget! Make a plan for how much you want to spend on back to school supplies? How much on a backpack? How much on a lunchbox? How much do you want to spend overall? What supplies are needed? Make a plan for what is needed, writing or printing out all supplies needed, and what your budget is for those items! And stick to your budget!
Spread out your back to school shopping over a few pay periods. Pick up items each week instead of buying all at once. By spreading out your back to school shopping over a few pay periods you’re able to not only see what’s on sale but also not hit your bank account all at once.
Next, look in your house for school items from previous years! You may have new items to still use! I still have tons of things from last year! Look to see what you still have that you can use for this upcoming year! Take an inventory of what you have before you head out to the store!
4. Look for bargains online or compare store prices. After budgeting and looking at your supply list and what you have at home, look for bargains on Amazon or online! Also, compare store prices before spending! You don’t have to pay full price for something! Look for coupons, sales, and bargain shop! You can even go on PoshMark or Mercari for some back to school bargain shopping so get resourceful! I buy a ton of brand new items on PoshMark and Mercari!
5. Don’t wait until the last minute to shop! Shop slowly and intentionally. When you “have to have something”, you’re more willing to spend more money! So don’t wait until the last minute to go school shopping! Get a head start on it, and shop slowly, so you don’t end up going over budget!
Bonus tip: start a sinking fund for school supplies after going back to school shopping. Take the total amount that you spent this year, and divide that total by 12 months. Get an envelope, and start saving that amount each month towards next year’s back to school shopping! A sinking fund helps you to save a small amount each month or paycheck for a specific thing! We do this for Christmas and other categories!
Back to school shopping does not have to be a headache or break the bank! You get to decide how much you spend, and you can be intentional and save! You got this friend! What back to school shopping tips do you have?
Until next time,
Shelly
