{"id":118589,"date":"2021-07-22T16:32:31","date_gmt":"2021-07-22T16:32:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/?p=118589"},"modified":"2021-07-22T16:32:31","modified_gmt":"2021-07-22T16:32:31","slug":"u-s-retailers-scramble-to-stock-shelves-as-kids-head-back-to-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/markets\/u-s-retailers-scramble-to-stock-shelves-as-kids-head-back-to-school\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. retailers scramble to stock shelves as kids head back to school"},"content":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES\/NEW YORK (Reuters) – At Stationery and Toy World, a family-owned shop in New York\u2019s Upper West Side, manager Gary Rowe is having difficulty getting all the pens and folders he ordered for the important back-to-school season.<\/p>

Slideshow ( 4 images )<\/span><\/figcaption>

His usual vendors have low stocks of Pilot\u2019s erasable FriXion pens and Paper Mate Flair marker pens – and prices are high on stationery and other in-demand school supplies.<\/p>\n

And Rowe is not alone, retailers are navigating a storm of challenges – higher production costs, cargo delays from China and other Asian countries, and sky-high shipping rates – as they gear up for the industry\u2019s second-biggest selling season.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m hoping that when everything catches up, we get more stock,\u201d Rowe said at his store packed wall-to-wall with a colorful array of pens and markers. \u201cBusiness has been really slow.\u201d<\/p>\n

After a year of keeping their kids at home, parents are eager for classes to start again.<\/p>\n

Stimulus checks and advance child tax credits from U.S. President Joe Biden\u2019s administration are expected to boost sales of back-to-school merchandise, especially shoes and clothing, following last year\u2019s outlays on laptops, headphones and other equipment for remote learning. The National Retail Federation expects total back-to-school spending to rise 6.4% to $108.1 billion this year. Average spending for all age groups is forecast to be $2,049, up 10.8%.<\/p>\n

But following retailers\u2019 moves to prune inventories, shoppers may find fewer discounts, smaller markdowns and less merchandise in stores. Retailers \u201cjust don\u2019t know how much to stock,\u201d said Stacy DeBroff, founder of marketing data firm Influence Central, which works with retailers such as JCPenney, Dick\u2019s Sporting Goods and Skechers. \u201cThere continues to be lingering supply-side issues because manufacturing was done abroad,\u201d DeBroff said. JCPenney, Dick\u2019s Sporting Goods and Skechers declined to comment on inventory.<\/p>\n

Some – most likely bigger retailers – will have stored away backpacks and other products from last year that did not sell, said Matt Kramer, KPMG\u2019s consumer and retail national sector leader. \u201cI think they\u2019re being very careful about giving further discounts as their inventory starts to dwindle,\u201d Kramer said.<\/p>\n

Macy\u2019s worked to bring in denim clothes, school uniforms and small electronics, Chief Financial Officer Adrian Mitchell said at a recent investor conference. \u201cWe believe it\u2019s better to potentially lose a sale due to the lack of supply than to over buy and have markdown merchandise at higher rates,\u201d Mitchell said.<\/p>\n

Target started putting backpacks on its sales floors much earlier this year, around the end of May, a month or more earlier than usual, data firm StyleSage said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still moving backpacks and crayons,\u201d said Brett Rose, chief executive officer at United National Consumer Suppliers, a wholesale distributor whose retail clients include Walmart\u2019s Sam\u2019s Club, Amazon and Five Below.<\/p>\n

Rose said he is usually finished bringing such products in by May or June – at the latest.<\/p>\n

During the second quarter, retailers imported lower volumes of popular back-to-school items compared to the same period in 2019, before the pandemic, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence\u2019s trade data firm Panjiva. For instance, retailers\u2019 imports of backpacks, up 9.8% versus the second quarter of 2020, were 15.2% lower than the same period in 2019, Panjiva said. Imports of kids\u2019 shoes and clothing, up 64.4% versus 2020, were 12.6% below the amount imported during the same period in 2019.<\/p>\n

Overall, retailers so far have marked down a smaller proportion of backpacks, and discounts are smaller on average, according to the data firm StyleSage. It sees similar patterns in other clothing categories.<\/p>\n

Experts say back-to-school may offer a preview of what to expect at Christmastime as retailers pare offerings to limit risk.<\/p>\n

Source: Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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