Back to school | Inflation also affects the pencil box

Parents have already made their back-to-school purchases, and others are taking advantage of the end of August to check off the items on this list whose rating is significantly higher this year, driven by inflation. last months.

When Eliane started kindergarten, she had a brand new backpack. Pink. Carefully chosen to grow with her. Her mom questioned the style, but the little one was sure of her choice and has since fully assumed it. Because four years later, it’s still the one Eliane will wear for her return to school, in her fourth year.

From the start of her daughter’s schooling, Marjorie Simard decided to make wise choices when shopping for school supplies. His goal: to keep them for a long time, even if it requires more effort. “Sometimes, the easy solution is not what you think,” says this remedial teacher, who knows the school environment well.

Her strategy paid off: with the check for $108, the supplement for the purchase of school supplies paid by Quebec, Marjorie managed to respect her budget this year, despite inflation. In addition to the backpack (made in Quebec, guaranteed for life), she chooses the most durable bindings (duo-tangs) that come back year after year, identification labels that stick on everything and age-proof lunch box containers. “Yes, it costs more to buy, but if you calculate over the years, it becomes a saving,” says Marjorie Simard.

Appreciable increase

Inflation is putting enormous pressure on back-to-school this year. Despite this, it’s not just Marjorie Simard who bets on quality.

At the Zoubris paper mill, a veritable institution on Parc Avenue in Montreal, owner Jimmy Zoubris sells just that, quality. Those who want $1 school supplies are kindly directed a few doors down by the owner to the discount store.

Obviously, few do, because the clientele keeps coming back. But this year, this man who fell into the stationery business 40 years ago, when his father opened the business, sees a difference. Parents are concerned. Jimmy Zoubris estimates the rise in the price of school supplies far beyond inflation. Overall, the school list costs 15% to 20% more, compared to last year.

How do parents get there then?

“They are recovering more and more”, explains the merchant who, with proof, shows us lists where items have been crossed out, because parents can take back what their children already have. Jimmy Zoubris also admits that the pretty French notebooks, of high quality, but more expensive, are less popular than before.

A little further east, at the corner of Beaubien and Saint-Vallier, Gaëtane Daigneault makes the same observation at the Le Plateau paper mill, now a member of the Hamster brand. Its customers are facing a serious increase in costs, particularly for paper products. M^me Daigneault has been working in the stationery industry for thirty years. This is not its first storm, but this time the rise is particularly significant. According to her, the complete shopping list, which includes the backpack, lunch bag and cases, can climb to $250 or $300. By his estimate, that’s nearly double the bill for the same list two years ago.

Gaëtane Daigneault also notes that parents have waited longer than usual this year, so much so that she estimated in the middle of last week that more than three quarters of her clientele had not made their purchases of school supplies. base.

Preparing for the start of the 2023 school year

To be able to absorb this expense when living with limited resources, there is no miracle solution: you have to plan for the cost.

Once the purchases for the start of the 2022 school year have been made, Johanne Le Blanc, of Option consommateurs, advises to carefully assess the total cost that this represented.

If you know there are other school-related expenses coming up, calculate those too. Exits, for example. And this, for each of the children.

Then divide the amount by 12 and save it monthly — or at each paycheque.

Stéphanie Paquin, budget advisor at ACEF du Nord in Montreal, advises parents to create a separate savings account. This will include all expenses related to children, and it will also be possible to go there to pay for the new sneakers in November – which will also cost more. Such an account makes it possible to better assess expenses and make choices. “Back to school is a hard blow,” admits Stéphanie Paquin, because many expenses are added to basic school effects, and parental guilt can easily flare up when making choices.

It’s very heavy on the family budget to spend $600 in the fall to absorb all the back-to-school expenses, notes the advisor. “But $50 a month is less scary,” says Stéphanie Paquin, who admits that exercising can be very difficult for someone who has never done it.

And still it is necessary that the family does not have a problem of over-indebtedness, which would force it to pay on credit for school supplies, to extend the payment and to pay much more in the end. In such a scenario, debt management is the priority, recalls Stéphanie Paquin.

consumer education

In the budget planning assistance resource centres, there is an increase and a diversification of the clientele, pressed by inflation.

Stéphanie Paquin hopes that there will be more participants in ACEF workshops this fall, to prevent behavioral problems with money and credit.

Jessica Laflamme, founder of Do more with less, which offers planning tools and budget workshops, shares this wish. “We lack consumer education,” she says. And back to school is a really intense time. »

“It is certain that people are experiencing additional stress this year, believes Jessica Laflamme. If groceries cost $50 more a week, you have to find a way to pay for that too. »

At Marjorie Simard, back-to-school shopping is a pretext for consumer education. Éliane often accompanies her mother to the pharmacy, from the height of her 9 years (and a half!). She already understands that we have to make choices. And that if we choose a pink school bag, it will be there for a long time!

How to get away with it at a good price?

Buy wholesale

Some items come back year after year. Loose-leaf, for example. Marjorie Simard always plans a small supply of these supplies and buys them throughout the year, whenever a price is particularly good. “It avoids having to take the car one evening, at the last minute, because a duo-tang is missing,” she says.

Don’t ignore lost items

Simple advice, but one that is not often followed, says Marjorie Simard, surprised to see the quantity of unrecovered objects in the schools she visits as a remedial teacher.

Save by trading

It’s a great way to bring something new without spending a penny, says Jessica Laflamme. The founder of Do more with less suggests talking about it with colleagues, friends, family, because many parents have magnificent lunch boxes that are just waiting for a second life. The advice also holds for clothes.

Discover community resources

“Even people from the middle class are struggling to get there right now,” says Johanne Le Blanc, budget advisor at Option consommateurs, which directs some of its customers to community services, which many are discovering. Food banks, for example. The number 211 makes it possible to discover the resources offered, and according to which criteria. Organizations are currently distributing backpacks and school effects. Even there, the start of the 2022 school year is difficult. Sun Youth announced last week that it lacked the resources to meet the demand.

Save where possible

Back-to-school expenses are mandatory, outings are not. Financial planner Johanne Le Blanc advises exploring free activities in the city or neighborhood this fall. There are many and those who have never done it will be surprised at the offer. For children, the outdoor cinema at the end of summer or the picnic are outings that are worth many others whose bill would be much higher, she says.