Children return to school, and parents focus on home

In recent years, a fierce consumer battle has emerged over back-to-school products, targeting both parents' wallets and children's hearts. But it's not just about the bags and pencil cases; attention must also be given to creating a comfortable and suitable study space at home.

The long months of conflict have brought about various consumer shifts, leading to changes in Israeli purchasing habits. Shoppers are adapting to the uncertainty and necessary adjustments, while stores and business owners are being forced to alter traditional sales methods.

In the past, back-to-school shopping mainly involved purchasing stationery, notebooks, and backpacks. However, in recent years, it has turned into a full-fledged event, with stores offering a vast selection of products. Today, children must choose from countless types of bags, notebook colors and sizes, and a wide variety of pens, markers, sharpeners, calculators, and pencil cases.

The wide range of options has led to intense competition among different retailers, almost compelling the average consumer to prepare in advance and conduct market research to create the most affordable and worthwhile shopping cart for the back-to-school season.

This year, the long months of conflict have pushed shoppers to start their search for the best deals earlier than in previous years. "Usually, we see store traffic increase throughout August as we approach September 1st," says Ofer Barak, CEO of The Stock chain. "Given the war, we anticipated that Israeli consumers would make their purchases earlier, so we were prepared with stocked shelves as early as the beginning of June." Barak adds that their expectations were realistic, resulting in a 33% increase in purchases compared to the same period last year.

Barak attributes the shift to two main reasons: "First, the uncertainty of recent months has led to early purchases to complete the task rather than waiting until the last minute. Second, fewer people are traveling abroad this year, and finding activities for children has become challenging. Therefore, parents have turned early back-to-school shopping into a shared activity that doesn't require unnecessary spending but rather an advance-planned expenditure."

How competitive is this market? At The Stock, for instance, you can find a range of back-to-school products, from basic supplies to branded items, all of which come with the promise of offering the best prices in the country.

Another example of the market heating up is that even traditional and long-established retail chains are vying for consumers' attention by rebranding themselves as discount stores or launching sub-brands that challenge the discount chains in general and The Stock chain in particular.

So, after purchasing all the back-to-school items, how can you prepare your child's room for an effective and comfortable learning routine? Ariel Harel, head of the home styling program at Tiltan School of Design and Visual Communication in Haifa, offers some tips on how to design a learning-friendly environment for the new school year: "It's important to create a comfortable space for children of all ages that includes a dedicated learning area with a desk, a stylish reading lamp, and efficient storage solutions like organizers for binders and notebooks, storage boxes, or floating shelves for study and craft materials that are easily accessible. Invest wisely in a comfortable, preferably orthopedic, chair to protect your child's back, and resist the temptation to buy a chair that doesn't meet their needs. Create a calm corner that will promote tranquility and allow them to maximize their study time at home. In addition to a desk, consider adding a cozy seating area with a bean bag, hammock, rocking chair, or rug where children can sit and read a book, study for exams, or simply relax."