September sees back-to-school and university items spike in price
Seasonal pricing, combined with high inflation, means school and university shopping will cost notably more this year
New research from the impartial price and product comparison service, PriceSpy, demonstrates that those waiting until the new term starts to buy school and university items may end up paying over the odds.
Inflation hits school and university shopping
Inflation is already having an impact on many common school and university products, with some items up to 21% more expensive than last year.
Revealing that many of these products jumped in price between August and September last year, as retailers raised prices in line with demand, PriceSpy urges people to do their shopping before the new term begins to avoid paying even more.
|
Product |
Annual inflation* |
August vs September 2022** |
|
Increase of 21% (From £108 in 2022 to £131 in 2023) |
Increase of 16% (From £94in August to £110 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 8% (From £122 in 2022 to £132 in 2023) |
Increase of 11% (From £107 in August to £118 in September) |
|
|
Price drop of 4% (From £28 in 2022 to £27 in 2023) |
Increase of 9% (From £27 in August to £29 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 15% (From £74 in 2022 to £85 in 2023) |
Increase of 7% (From £72i n August to £77 in September) |
|
|
Price drop of 13% (From £86 in 2022 to £75 in 2023) |
Increase of 6% (From £67 in August to £71 in September) |
|
|
Price drop of 3% (From £162 in 2022 to £157 in 2023) |
Increase of 5% (From £14 in August to £151 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 16% (From £373 in 2022 to £431 in 2023) |
Increase of 1% (From £371 in August to £374 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 5% (From £60 in 2022 to £63 in 2023) |
Increase of 1% (From £68 in August to £68 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 8% (From £61 in 2022 to £66 in 2023) |
Increase of 2% (From £55 in August to £56 in September) |
Despite inflation impacting them this year, a few items may also fall in price between August and September if pricing trends follow last year:
|
Product |
Annual inflation* |
August vs September 2022** |
|
Price drop of 3% (From £171 in 2022 to £69 in 2023) |
Price drop of 7% (From £80 in August to £74 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 9% (From £105 in 2022 to £114 in 2023) |
Price drop of 4% (From £106 in August to £102 in September) |
|
|
Increase of 9% (From £447 in 2022 to £486 in 2023) |
Price drop of 0.5% (From £440 in August to £438 in September) |
Liisa-Matinvesi Bassett, UK country manager at PriceSpy, comments: “The inaugural pre-university shopping trip to buy pots and pans, irons, toasters and so forth is a rite of passage. Albeit, an expensive one.”
“Persistently high inflation this year means that people are going to be paying more for some of these school and university essentials than they did last year. Based on what we know from PriceSpy’s price history, shoppers would be wise to purchase the bulk of their essential back-to-school and university items before September to avoid even higher prices. With retailers running promotions at different times, running a quick price comparison before making key purchases can help save even more money.”
Methodology
* Based on average weighted price on PriceSpy between 1st January 2022 - 9th August 2022 vs 1st January 2023 - 9th August 2023
** Based on average weighted price on PriceSpy between 1st August - 31st August 2022 vs 1st September - 30th September 2022
About PriceSpy
PriceSpy is a comprehensive price and product comparison service used by millions of consumers every month. It helps consumers find, discover, research and compare products. Since the business first started in 2002, its main objective has been to help consumers make better purchasing decisions. PriceSpy does this by collecting and sharing honest, transparent information about retail shops, products and prices. PriceSpy has well over 700 000 indexed products, sold by more than six thousand shops. PriceSpy is part of Schibsted and is located in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, France and the United Kingdom. The PriceSpy app is available to download for free, via the App Store and Google Play.
Contacts
Powered by Notified