Dive Brief:
- As consumers begin their back-to-school shopping early, Dollar General is offering back-to-school discounts for teachers and savings for shoppers, the discount chain announced Monday.
- Dollar General is offering multiuse 30% off discounts on school supplies for teachers through Sept. 6, but they must register and verify their status using its Teacher’s Central portal, the retailer said. Other shoppers can save $2 on qualifying school supplies purchased for $10 or more both this month and next month with a special coupon.
- The retailer is also touting value-oriented back-to-school product offerings, including more than 100 school supplies available for $1 or less, like notebooks, pencils, glue sticks and folders. Backpacks are available for $5 each and Crayola coloring packs for $3, the retailer said.
Dive Insight:
Back-to-school shopping is starting early this summer, with major retailers trying to entice shoppers with deals. As Dollar General touts its own discounts, other retailers, including Target, Best Buy, Walmart and Amazon, have already held sales this month. Indeed, shoppers used the Prime Day period earlier this week to partially stock up on back-to-school supplies, according to Adobe.
“Back-to-school shopping can be stressful for many consumers, especially in this challenging economy. More than ever, our customers are looking for affordability to help them stay within budget, and convenience to save them time,” Shareeka Meadows, vice president and division merchandise manager of stationery and apparel at Dollar General, said in a statement.
The rollout of Dollar General’s discounts come as more consumers begin shopping earlier for the back-to-school season, but it remains to be seen how much shoppers will spend for the upcoming school year. A JLL survey released earlier this month found that 22.1% of consumers began back-to-school shopping last month, and 20% began shopping this month. Though JLL predicts that shoppers will increase their back-to-school spending per child from $390 last year to $475 this year, Deloitte estimates that parents will decrease their spending this year to $586 per child.
Outside of its back-to-school efforts, Dollar General also recently named a new chief marketer with experience from Signet Jewelers and Walmart, and settled safety violations with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The company this month reached a deal with OSHA to pay a $12 million fine and introduce workplace safety improvements. The regulator cited the retailer for unsafe storage practices that cut off access to electrical panels, emergency exits and fire extinguishers.
