Dive Brief:

• Several retailers have set out back-to-school specials before the bell even rings out the end of the year for some schools.

• Clothing, general, and office-supply retailers are trying to widen the time between consumer spending on back to school supplies and Christmas presents.

• But experts say the move may not work, in part because consumers are simply getting used to being able to access sales and price promotions all year round.

Dive Insight:

It always seems a bit ludicrous when Christmas decorations come out as early as Halloween — one crafts retailer is getting a jump on things this year by putting them out now.

Here comes a manufactured back-to-school rush. But that may be ill-advised, partly because the psychology is so different and partly because price promotions are now a year-round phenomenon. Many consumers are anxious to get Christmas shopping done, lists checked off. But at the end of the school year, hardly anyone — kids or parents alike — wants to think about school. And when it comes to clothes, a parent doesn’t really know what size their sun-kissed kids will even fit into by the end of the summer.