Circana: What retailers can expect from back-to-school footwear sales
When it comes to back-to-school shopping, K-12 parents may opt to buy school essentials before buying their child a new pair of shoes.
According to Circana’s Omnibus survey from last August, 60% of K-12 parents reported that they typically make their back-to-school footwear purchases “close to the start of school.” Last year, footwear sales peaked during the first two weeks of August, just ahead of the peak school start weeks, according to Circana’s Retail Tracking data.
Assuming the 2024 school start dates are similar, Circana says it can expect the same pattern this year. However, retail calendar shifts, with the addition of a 53rd week back in January, will push one of these weeks into the month of July and the second retail quarter.
Back-to-school season aside, Circana noted that parents have been prioritizing footwear purchases for their kids throughout the year. In the 12 months ending April 2024, year-over-year sales of footwear to be worn by kids and teens under 18-years-old grew by 7%, while sales of footwear for adults declined by 3%, according to Circana’s Consumer Tracking data. While sales for all wearers ages 7 and older increased, most of the growth came from sales for teens, who are primarily wearing adult shoe sizes.
[READ MORE: NRF: Back-to-school spending to be second-highest on record]
Last year, Circana found the percentage of footwear units sold on promotion from June through August returned to pre-pandemic 2019 levels. This came after two years of volatility: a dip in 2021 when supply was low and demand was high, followed by a sharp increase in 2023 when supply was more plentiful, but demand was slower.
When asked what factor tends to influence their footwear purchases for kids and teens, just one-third of consumers cited promotions and discounts – behind quality, price, and child or teen requests, according to Circana’s Future of Footwear study.
