NORFOLK, Va. - It's that time of year for the Millner family: back-to-school shopping.
“There's usually the normal stuff. Pencils, composite notebooks, a few binders and stuff, and then we're also going to let the kids do a little bit of shopping for their school clothes,” Allan Millner said.
For Drew Davidson, his family has a strategy to help save money on supplies, especially with inflation.
“We try to shop in advance, so this isn't much of a headache coming up soon,” Davidson said. “You definitely see an increase from the little things.”
“It's a private school, so just like the tuition, you've got to stay ahead of the game, try to keep that money to the side, do little things here and there [and] just to stay ahead,” Davidson added.
As inflation continues hitting the country, and families hit stores, attention is on back-to-school shopping trends.
According to a recent survey by Deloitte, parents plan to spend, on average, $661 per child. That's up eight percent versus last year.
The survey also found that 33 percent say their household financial situation is worse since last year, and 57 percent are concerned about the rise in back-to-school product prices because of inflation.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Virginia Peninsula is gearing up for its annual school supplies drive, which usually helps around 500 families on average per year.
Hal Smith, President & CEO of The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Virginia Peninsula, said this year’s drive will be as critical or more than ever.
“Just the fact that things cost so much more than they did last year,” Smith told News 3. “We work very hard to make sure that the transition from summer to the start of school is as seamless as possible.”
Meanwhile, Millner's family is waiting until the Virginia Sales Tax Holiday from Aug. 5-7 to stock up on supplies.
“When you have to buy 15, 20 composite notebooks, it saves the money and time,” he said.
Smith said they usually start getting supplies for families around mid-August and will have supplies year-round.
Their supply drive is for any local student ages 6-18.
According to Smith, you can find Boys & Girls Clubs locations to find a list of club sites near you to reach out about school supplies being distributed.
If you’d like to donate school supplies to help families through the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Virginia Peninsula, you can call their administrative office at (757) 223-7204.
