Skinny jeans in bright colors and prints. Ankle boots. Zebra-striped pants and staplers. Flash drives that look like Angry Birds and Matchbox cars.
These are just some of the hot products that back-to-school shoppers will find waiting for them on store shelves this summer. Retailers say that, after a couple of years of holding onto their wallets, parents and kids will hit the stores in droves in August in search of bargains and the latest back-to-school fashions.
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A new survey from the National Retail Federation estimates that the average person with children in grades K-12 will spend $688.62 on school clothes and supplies this year, up from $603.63 last year. Total spending is expected to reach $30.3 billion.
“Backpacks rip, pencils break and children grow, there’s no way around it,” said Matthew Shay, president of the National Retail Federation, “but as they begin tackling their shopping lists, parents will make sure to spend smarter than they ever have before.”
Chris Holdredge, a member of the merchandise team at L.L. Bean and former manager of the company’s Kids Division, said this is the first back-to-school season in a long time where independent research is giving industry trade groups “a lot of optimism.”
“People have held back for the past few years,” Holdredge said, “and now is the year to kind of start replenishing items.”
What will customers find on the shelves?
Bold denim in the form of skinny jeans and jeggings are everywhere, in bright colors as well as flowery or fanciful prints, such as the red plaid “London Calling” made by Princess Vera Wang for Kohl’s department stores.
Kohl’s has hired “Glee” star Lea Michele to hawk shoes to students, including trendy ankle boots that can be worn with skirts, shorts, skinny jeans and dresses.
For girls, the stores will be filled with blends of the masculine and feminine to create menswear-inspired looks. That means motorcycle jackets with pleated skirts, structured blazers over skinny denim, and lots of houndstooth and herringbone patterns.
At Macy’s, this girl-meets-grunge style shows up as destroyed denim and studded leather jackets for daytime wear, followed by lace dresses in soft colors at night.
And studs, by the way, are a hot embellishment for guys this year as well. They’re on shoes, jackets and fedoras.
Lucky for Maine students, one of the trendiest looks for guys, according to Macy’s, is preppy Ivy Leaguer-meets-shipyard worker. Scour the local department stores — or your dad’s closet — for pea coats, Henleys, dark-rinsed denim and lug sole boots.
Denims in bold colors and ankle boots are just as plentiful in guys’ closets this season as they are in girls’ wardrobes.
Another trend that’s crossing gender barriers: Tribal looks, animal prints and faux fur.
Nature-inspired prints are always in vogue at L.L. Bean, but graphic tees, girl’s skorts and backpacks featuring activities like mountain biking and images of woodland and sea creatures are big this year.
DURABILITY IS KEY
Time-crunched parents of younger kids are looking for durable, versatile clothing that can transition easily from the schoolyard to the backyard, Holdredge said.
“We all know as soon as kids get off the bus, the backpack is thrown down and they’re running into the closest backyard to play on the swingset or throw the football around,” he said. “It really has to have that durability, because I don’t think many kids come home from school and change into their play clothes. We really tried to speak to that in how we designed the product, how the fit is so that it is roomy and appropriate as well.”
Holdredge said that when it comes to both clothing and school supplies, L.L. Bean is drawing on its century of experience as an outdoor retailer and incorporating some of its trail-tested features into its back-to-school backpacks, apparel and outwear.
The retailer is introducing a new backpack series this year called the Explorer series (for ages 7 to 10) that incorporates features from some of its best-selling hiking backpacks.
“It’s got the mesh pockets you can put your water bottle in, and it’s got the adjustability, the ruggedness, as well,” Holdredge said. “We know that kids don’t just use book packs for school. You bring them if you’re going on a sleepover, or if they’re going to grandma’s house on a car trip, or in that day hike with their family as well.”
In Maine, it’s also important to remember to add transitional outerwear, such as a lightweight fleece jacket or a lined rain jacket, to a back-to-school shopping list. “They don’t need their insulated snow jacket yet, but it can get pretty darned chilly the first couple of weeks of September,” Holdredge said.
SUPPLIES THAT SURPRISE
Some of the same trends seen in clothing also translate into binders, notebooks and pencil pouches.
Through third-party research, Staples identified four distinct patterns that are likely to lure students through their doors: Sugar Rush, which includes vibrant candy-colored hues; Graphic Fantastic, with patterns reflecting a return to ’80s sci-fi; Nantucket, which includes breezy floral patterns; and Nomadic, which once again taps into the earthy, tribal prints.
How about a zebra-print stapler?
Retailers are finding that Angry Birds, superheroes and characters from the TV shows “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy” are popular styles for supplies, including flash drives.
Staples also has a line of flash drives shaped like cars. “They almost look like little Matchbox cars,” said Karen Pevenstein, a spokeswoman for the company. “There’s a Lamborghini, a Mini Cooper, an Astin Martin. It’s just a fun way to stay organized and keep your files all in one place.”
The “fun, hot, ‘it’ product” of the year, Pevenstein said, is the locker chandelier, which uses LED lighting to spruce up those dark, dingy locker spaces.
Why stop there? Other locker accessories include stick-on wall paper and shag rug liners.
“A child has their bedroom, which is obviously their own territory and space, and the locker is really the only other thing at that age that is really your own,” Pevenstein said. “The ability to make it personalized, I think, in the past couple of years has really become important.”
Meredith Goad can be contacted at 791-6332 or at:
mgoad@pressherald.com
Twitter: MeredithGoad
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