Price hikes on back-to-school essentials present challenges for consumers

Despite rising inflation, consumers are prioritizing back-to-school and college spending. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF) over one third or 38 percent of consumers have committed to cutting back on other expenses in order to be prepared for the upcoming fall semester. They expect to spend more than usual on both K-12 and college items with the NRF predicting that families will spend 864 dollars on school items, approximately 15 dollars more than last year, on children from elementary through high school age.