'BACK' SO SOON? RETAILERS SCOOT UP SCHOOL-SHOPPING SEASON.Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer Five weeks ago, Linda Olsen's kids were sitting in class, dreaming of summer. Now, they're already preparing for the new school year. The West Hills housewife finds herself like many shoppers these days, lured in by low prices and increasingly early promotions from retailers hungry for summertime cash. So she's on the prowl with her daughters, Jenny and Katy, and son, Michael, searching out the perfect backpack. Not wanting to miss out on the early sales that eat up all the hot merchandise, the family's already planning for a school year still a month and a half away. ``We've been to six stores in July, can you believe it?'' said a bemused Olsen. ``They got out five weeks ago, and here we are already.'' For major chain stores looking to increase business during traditionally slow months, back-to-school has become an increasingly popular hook to pull in shoppers who've already bought for summer and have yet to think about fall. ``Retailers are always looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. something to draw those customers into the store,'' said Jackie Fernandez, a retail services partner with Deloitte & Touche's Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. office. ``In summertime, this is one of the softer times. To get the back-to-school signs and drum up a little extra traffic, that's exactly what they're trying to do.'' Normally, the Olsens wait until August to start stocking up, but with three kids well attuned at·tune tr.v. at·tuned, at·tun·ing, at·tunes 1. To bring into a harmonious or responsive relationship: an industry that is not attuned to market demands. 2. to the trends and whims of shopping, Linda has learned that won't cut it any more. ``In any seasonal shopping, once they get (shipments) in, the cute ones sell out,'' she said, watching Jenny try out a wheeled Barbie Barbie in full Barbara Millicent Roberts A plastic doll, 11.5 in. (29 cm) tall, with the figure of an adult woman that was introduced in 1959 by Mattel, Inc., a southern California toy company. model. ``And if you want that cute one, you've got to be fast.'' Kmart was the leader of the pack, trotting out its first signs in early July, though it didn't drop prices until last week. While the merchandise arrived in aisles more quickly than in past years, the Years, The the seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time promotions began at their usual time. ``When I think to back-to-school shopping, I'd think get it done in July,'' said Abigail Jacobs, a spokeswoman for the chain. ``The stores were stocked slightly earlier - it's to have more sales time and year-round school Year-Round School is the operation of educational institutions on a calendar-system that tracks students into class schedules throughout the entire calendar year. A primary motivation is that higher student throughput is accomplished via more effective scheduling of school is becoming a factor. I feel like the holidays have already started. All the seasons are starting to blend together.'' Wal-Mart erected its signs hyping back-to-school sales in mid-July, and Target and Office Depot Office Depot (NYSE: ODP) is one of the world's leading suppliers of office products and services. The Company's selection of brand name office supplies includes business machines, computers, computer software and office furniture, while its business services encompass copying, countered by July 21. Most local malls are weeks away from bringing out their signs, waiting for their specialty stores Noun 1. specialty store - a store that sells only one kind of merchandise shop, store - a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services; "he bought it at a shop on Cape Cod" and department anchors to finish with their summer sales. ``We're looking at a couple of options, but nothing yet,'' said Rebecca Boehle, marketing coordinator for Westfield Shoppingtowns' Topanga and Promenade malls. ``A lot of stores still have a fair bit of summer merchandise, so we're trying to clear that out first. Once we have our sidewalk sale (this weekend) out of the way, then we'll start thinking about what sort of back-to-school promotions to do.'' Though August is malls' big back-to-school shopping month, the discount retailers have already been slugging For the baseball statistic, see Slugging average. Slugging is the practice of forming ad-hoc, informal carpools for purposes of commuting, essentially a variation of ride-share commuting and hitchhiking. it out for a few weeks. Target ran a sale after erecting its signs to lure shoppers. ``We like to get people shopping early,'' said Fernando Rubio, the West Hills Target's assistant store manager. ``You can see what all the new styles are and what's trendy. Then once we get into August, we really start selling stuff.'' It was a sale on Fiskars scissors scissors Cutting instrument or tool consisting of a pair of opposed metal blades that meet and cut when the handles at their ends are brought together. Modern scissors are of two types: the more usual pivoted blades have a rivet or screw connection between the cutting ends in a Van Nuys Office Depot that snared Susan Parker Susan D. Parker is an American Democratic politician from Alabama. A resident of Rogersville she served as a delegate for the 2000 Democratic National Convention and 2004 Democratic National Convention. First time she represented Opelika and second time Rogersville. . A first-grade teacher for the Los Angeles Unified School District The Los Angeles Unified School District (the "LAUSD") is the largest (in terms of number of students) public school system in California and the second-largest in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population. not due back until early September, Parker appreciates the earlier sales dates for their convenience. ``I think it's great,'' the Sherman Oaks resident said, toting a basket filled with $1 scissors. ``I can get all my supplies earlier. I can plan everything and not have to run around at the last minute when everyone else is there.'' Those all-summer sales make for lucrative sales, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. separate studies from Capital One bank, Deloitte & Touche and the National Retail Federation. By NRF's projections, the average household will spend $442 for both clothes and school supplies, with low-income homes spending even more - $513 per household. Deloitte & Touche's study, conducted in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, , shows a majority of parents spending more than $200 per child for clothes and supplies. Capital One's study, which focuses specifically on supplies, figures parents will spend $97 per student. And while they're forking out that money, NRF's spokeswoman Sarah Thompson Sarah Thompson (born October 25, 1979 in Los Angeles, California) is an American actress. She joined the cast of 7th Heaven in its tenth season as "Rose," Simon's fiance. says consumers are also getting acclimated to the crucial fall buying season. ``What back-to-school really is is a great way to get your young customers excited about what you're going to have in stores for the next few months,'' she said. ``It's the first time most consumers have seen new merchandise since spring. This is a preview of what they'll see all the way up to the holidays. The people have to shop anyway, so they give them the sneak peek.'' Capital One's survey shows the vast majority of shopping taking place in August with as much as 30 percent occurring after the first day of school. But for shoppers like Daisy Barrera, a West Hills resident scoping out the sales bins at Target, it's not a question of fall fashion, an early school start or getting tricked by promotions. She's learned, just as the Olsens have, not to wait until the last minute, when the good merchandise has already found its way into savvy shoppers' pencil pouches. ``Sure, it's early,'' she said, examining a pack of pens. ``But it's necessary to get things now. Otherwise, the stores will run out of what I want.'' CAPTION(S): 5 photos, box Photo: (1 -- 3 -- color) Clockwise from top, a bin of erasers stands ready Friday for the early rush of back-to-school shoppers at the Office Depot in Van Nuys as shoppers wheel their carts through isles of school supplies. Most students have more than a month of before classes begin. Daisy Barrera shops for pens and pencils for her children's coming school year Friday at the Target in West Hills. (4) Maria Valencia of Pacoima shops for school supplies for her three children at the Office Depot in Van Nuys. (5) Just five weeks out of school, Jenny Olsen, 9, and her sister, Katy, 11, shop for packs Friday at the Target in West Hills. Michael Owen
Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer Box: (color) BACK TO SCHOOL BUMP-UP Jon Gerung/Staff Artist |
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