New Survey Finds Parents Spend More on Back-to-School Shopping than Black Friday

thredUP uncovers the true impact of Back-to-School shopping on our wallets and the planet — and reveals the kid’s brands with the best resale value to help you cut the waste.

August 14, 2019 — thredUP, the world’s largest online fashion resale marketplace, surveyed hundreds of parents across the U.S and found that the majority of parents spend more shopping for their children during the back-to-school season than they do during the holidays. This includes what parents spend on Black Friday — supposedly the biggest shopping day of the year.

thredUP Back-to-School Key Survey Findings:

62% of parents spend more on apparel and accessories for their children for ‘back to school’ than during the holiday season.
The majority of those surveyed say their BTS shopping spree beats what they buy for their child on Black Friday, or even on birthday presents.
On average, parents say they buy 19 items per child, and spend $24 per item — a total of $866/family!*

Shopping Smarter for Back-to-School Can Save Families Tons of $$ and Tons of Waste — Literally.

If every household in the U.S. were to purchase an average of 19 items per child, that would be a total of 4.6M brand new fall clothes and accessories. Shopping secondhand and selling past-season clothes with online resellers like thredUP can save consumers up to 90% off retail prices, and put dollars back in their pockets. Being a more conscious consumer also recirculates lightly-worn clothing back into the circular economy to extend the life of clothes.

The Eco-Impact of BTS Shopping:

4.6M new items purchased = 36.3B lbs of C02 emissions — that’s 86M miles’ worth of driving emissions!
The purchases of one household alone would be equivalent to 1,096 lbs of C02 emissions.

If everyone bought just one used item instead of new this year, we would save:

5.7B lbs of CO2 emissions — equivalent to half a million cars taken off the road for a year
11B kWh of energy — equivalent to lighting up the Eiffel Tower for 141 years
25B gallons of water — equivalent to filling up 1,140 Bellagio fountains
449M lbs of waste — equivalent to the weight of 1M polar bears

Parents have sustainability top of mind this Fall…

The eco impact of purchases seems to be an increasing consideration for parents. Based on thredUP’s survey, 53% of parents say they have not historically made eco-conscious shopping decisions for back-to-school, however 71% now think it’s important to shop more sustainably.

…But they’re trashing valuable items instead of recouping costs.

thredUP’s survey found that 80% of parents donate clothing their child no longer wears, when they could be selling like-new and lightly worn clothing to get cash back in their pockets.

Visit thredup.com/cleanout to order a free kit and Kondo those kid’s clothes. Order a donation bag for extra feel-good factor to send $5 to the charity of your choice, like Help a Mother Out or Big Brother Big Sister Foundation.

Even more shocking? thredUP found that 15% of parents throw their kid’s clothes in the trash!

Each year, 26 billion pounds of textiles are sent to landfill.

thredUP is on a mission to fight fashion waste and keep clothing in use and out of the landfill by making it easy to clean out responsibly.

thredUP reveals the kid’s brands with the best resale value for smart purchasing and purging this Back-to-School season.

thredUP’s data scientists ran the numbers to discover the kid’s brands with the best resale value this BTS season. Below are the best brands to buy to get the most bang for your buck. They are also the best brands to sell with resellers like thredUP. Since they hold their value, you stand to make the most money!

Shop sustainable kid’s clothes here →

Top 10 Kid’s Brands with Best Resale Value:

Patagonia Pullover, Lilly Pulitzer Dress, The North Face Zip Up

Best Kid’s Brand Buys for Every Price Point:

$:

$$:

$$$:

Nike Athletic Shorts, Gap Jeans, Vineyard Vines Cords

ABOUT THREDUP

Forget everything you know about used clothing and join millions of consumers in a resale revolution. thredUP is the world’s largest fashion resale platform, designed to save the planet and your wallet from waste. The company makes selling your clothes a cinch, and resells 35,000 brands — from GAP to Gucci — at up to 90% off retail prices. Backed by world-class investors, thredUP is reinventing resale with cutting edge technology and logistics — shattering stigmas and converting skeptics. The magic happens behind-the-scenes in thredUP’s automated Upcycle Centers, which have redistributed nearly 100M unique garments from closets across America. With further expansions to physical stores, “try-before-you-buy” Goody Boxes, and retail partnerships, thredUP is inspiring a new generation to think secondhand first and paving the way for a more sustainable fashion future.