The majority (80%) of consumers with children in preschool through high school expect to spend more (39%) or the same (41%) per child on back to school shopping this year compared to last year, according to the latest American Express Spending & Saving Tracker. The average family of four will spend $550 preparing for their kids’ return to the classroom, with clothing shoes and supplies as top expenditures. More surprising, given sharp declines in consumer confidence over the last two months, is that approximately half (45%) of parents have a range of cosmetic services on their back to school checklists, from haircuts and manicures to teeth whitening and, in a few cases, even tattoos.

This month’s American Express Spending & Saving Tracker surveyed consumers about their back to school spending intentions. The research sample of 2068 consumers among the U.S. general population included two subgroups – the affluent and young professionals, as well as 500 households with children in grades K-12.

Budgeting 101

While many Americans (39%) plan to spend more on back to school shopping this year than in 2009, the majority (63%) say they will have a set budget and virtually all parents (94%) say they will look for ways to be resourceful and to stretch their dollars, primarily by shopping for clearance or sale merchandise (76%) and clipping coupons and/or watching for store promotions (63%). Clothing, shoes, and school supplies are the leading anticipated back to school expenses.

One-third (34%) of parents say electronics are on their back to school shopping list. The largest single purchase some parents (18%) will make is a new computer or laptop, spending an average of $530.

Other electronics on the shopping list include:

- Calculators (16%)

- Cell phones (11%)

- MP3 players (7%)

- E-Readers/iPads (5%)

- Printers (5%)

Grooming 101

“According to consumers’ spending intentions, this back to school shopping season should be a nice improvement over last year for retailers,” said Pamela Codispoti, American Express senior vice president and general manager, Consumer Card Products. “Parents plan to spend more, buy early and spread their dollars among various types of retailers. And their spending plans range from high maintenance and high fashion to high tech items like calculators and computers.”

Psychology 101

While most parents (76%) are adamant that they are not pressured by their kids to spend beyond their means for back to school, some (19% of both the general population and affluents) admit to feeling peer pressure to “keep up” with other parents when back to school shopping. Young professionals especially feel pressure to “keep up with the Joneses” when it comes to back to school shopping with more than a third (36%) stating so.

More than two-thirds (68%) of the general population say they will shop for designer labels or brand names for their children. Designer purchases will primarily be made on sneakers, jeans, and shoes and less so on outerwear, non-denim pants and accessories.

Department stores (43%) will be the most popular destination for clothes shopping, followed by outlets and discount stores (33%). Surprisingly, only five percent of respondents say they will buy their kids’ back to school wardrobes online.

Eighty-seven percent of parents plan to make their back to school purchases before the start of the new school year and almost one-third (31%) plan to have their shopping completed by the end of July. One-in-ten parents say they will hold off on shopping until after the semester begins for reasons such as waiting for the best bargains (39%) or having a child who likes to check out the latest trends in the hallways before picking out their own new gear (19%).