As more school districts roll back their reopening plans to curb the spread of coronavirus, major retailers in the United States, EU and UK are aggressively discounting back-to-school backpacks and uniforms and airing new advertisements featuring students happily taking classes at home.
FILE PHOTO: A woman shops for back to school supplies at a Walmart store in San Diego, California August 6, 2015. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
Walmart Inc , which created a mask section in its “back to school clothing” department online, has begun airing a commercial showing a boy attending school, alone, in a mask one day, then taking class online in his bedroom the next day. Another ad shows a mom packing up a backpack with school supplies for her daughter to use while performing a chemistry experiment in the backyard.
But shopper footfall in June and July was down substantially this year—by 60% in Britain, 50% in Spain, Italy and France and more than 30% in Germany. That could spell trouble for retailers where back-to-school is a key sales driver on par with Christmas, according to Thomas Schnabel of the German retailer association HBS.
In England, all kids are expected to return to school in September, while schools in Los Angeles and San Diego – California’s two largest public-school districts - are set to resume classes online only in August.
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