CUMBERLAND, R.I. (WPRI) — Abigail and Grace Mcintyre have their backpacks filled with all of the essentials for their first day of school.
Their mother Dawn Mcintyre recently took them shopping to get all of the school supplies their district requires for the upcoming year.
When asked whether she thought inflation was impacting the price of school supplies, Mcintyre said it actually wasn’t as expensive for her compared to years past. She spent roughly $150 total on school supplies and kept an eye out for deals.
“I think school supplies kept true to their price,” she said.
But data from the National Retail Federation suggests the opposite. The NRF estimates that families with K-12 children will spend $864 this year on school supplies, which is $15 more than last year.
The NRF also expects back-to-school spending to reach a record high of $3.7 billion.
Mcintyre said while her daughters’ school supplies didn’t appear to be pricey, she did notice some of the necessities were out of stock.
“I had to go back once or twice to Target to get some things,” she explained.
The NRF reports that 68% of shoppers believe back-to-school items are more expensive this year, with the majority noticing price hikes on clothing and accessories.
More shoppers also appear to be comparing prices online or making due with the supplies they already have than in years past, according to the NRF.