Back to School Means Back to the Bank; Shopzilla Survey: Parents Will Spend More on Their Daughters than Sons.

LOS ANGELES -- Despite parents' rally cry of school not being a fashion show, serious cash is being spent on back-to-school clothing. According to a BizRate Research study of 2,850 online buyers conducted for leading comparison shopping search site Shopzilla (www.shopzilla.com), close to two-thirds (63%) of the parents surveyed list clothing as the most expensive item on their back-to-school shopping list.

Equipping girls to return to school tends to be more expensive, as 41% of the respondents say they expect to spend more money on their daughters than their sons. This may be a result of girls' love for labels, with 38% of parents with girls reporting their daughters are more likely to ask for designer back-to-school items compared to just 29% of the boys.

The National Retail Federation found that college students and their parents will spend $36.6 billion returning to campus this year, up 6.3% and more than double what parents of K-12 students will spend on back-to-school.(a)

Clothing made the top three most typically purchased items lists of all parents regardless of their child's grade level, ranking second behind school supplies among elementary school and high school students and third with college students. In fact, the 5th most searched for item on shopzilla.com is "backpack" for the week of August 20, 2006.

Cracking the Code

Since the cost of a fashionable child is so arresting, it's no wonder why more public schools are adopting strict dress codes and uniform policies for their students -- and parents are supporting the trend. Proponents for mandatory school uniforms claim that data and evidence report that uniforms improve discipline and reduce crime. While the majority of parents interviewed (78%) said their kids' schools did not have uniform policies, 43% believe that all schools should require students to wear uniforms. Retailers are responding by adding uniform shops to their stores and their websites. Parents are finding uniforms for their littlest tykes at kid-friendly retailer Gymboree, where fashionable uniforms are made. Families with older kids are finding uniform solutions from major retailers like The Gap and Old Navy, where tween versions of adult clothing abound.

As They get Older, They get More Expensive

More than one-third (36%) of the parents with children in school expect to spend between $100-$250 on back-to-school items this year. The majority (81%) of the parents surveyed expect to spend $500 or less, while half expect to spend $250 or less. Only 15% of the parents with students in elementary school anticipate spending more than $500, compared to 22% of high school students and 36% of college students.

Parents of college students are mostly dropping their cash on books, 45% of the parents of pupils in higher education say textbooks are the most expensive item they will purchase. More than four-fifths (81%) of college student parents admit to paying for their kids' books.

Wired U

Consumer electronics are a popular item with the college crowd, 47% of the parents with college students say they will buy items such as laptop computers and mobile phones. Less than a quarter (23%) of the parents surveyed say they plan to purchase tech-related items for elementary school students compared to 36% of the high school students' parents.

Parents Just Don't Understand

Kids would rather hit the books than hit the beach, at least that's what their parents think. Close to three-quarters (73%) of the parents surveyed think their children are looking forward to going back to school. Parents of high school students think their child is less likely to be thrilled about school's first day (35%), compared to 26% of elementary school students and 22% of college students. Over two-thirds (69%) of the parents are excited to send their kids back to school.

The majority (72%) of parents with kids heading back to school report they will spend at least six hours hitting the stores and Web sites in preparation for the new school term. So whether kids are overjoyed or annoyed with the idea of heading back to the classroom, they still have to make the annual back-to-school shopping trip. Make this year's trip a less stressful one by online window shopping with Shopzilla.

About The Study:

The study, conducted by BizRate.com, a division of Shopzilla, Inc., was based on a panel survey of 2,850 online shoppers in the BizRate Research Panel during the dates of July 27-31, 2006.

About Shopzilla, Inc.:

Shopzilla, formerly BizRate.com, is the most powerful and easiest-to-use shopping search site on the Web. With an index of more than 30 million products from more than 67,000 stores, Shopzilla uses ShopRank, a proprietary patent-pending algorithm, to help shoppers instantly find virtually anything on sale from anyone, anywhere on the Web at the best price. Shopzilla also features powerful comparison tools and BizRate consumer reviews of stores and products, the Web's largest and most trusted consumer feedback network. Every week Shopzilla prepares millions of shoppers to make smarter, more confident purchases and sends them directly to the checkout page of thousands of online merchants. Shopzilla also operates the BizRate consumer feedback network which collects approximately 1 million fresh reviews per month. Shopzilla powers shopping search for many of the Web's largest consumer sites, including AOL, Lycos, Time Warner's RoadRunner, and many others. Founded in 1996, the Los Angeles-based company also operates sites in the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. Shopzilla is owned by The E.W. Scripps Company (NYSE:SSP), a diverse media concern with interests in national television networks, newspaper publishing, broadcast television stations, TV retailing, and licensing and syndication. For more information, visit www.shopzilla.com, the smarter way to shop.

(a) Fourth annual NRF 2006 Back-to-College Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch.