At a school in Moncton, N.B., the doors to the gymnasium opened at 9 a.m. sharp on Aug. 19. Inside, students, parents and community members were greeted by a spread of second-hand clothes, backpacks, shoes, boots and books. Music played over the speaker; kids were in high spirits.
Queen Elizabeth School was hosting its first-ever back-to-school shop, an initiative spearheaded by vice-principal Kyle Bishop and the owner of a local consignment store in nearby Riverview, N.B., called Ready, Set, Grow.
The shop gave families a chance to choose from donated items ahead of the first day of school — without paying a cent.
“Our parents do the best that they can with the reality that they have,” Bishop said, adding the school has a large newcomer population. “And so when this opportunity came up, I just thought of all the families that this could benefit immensely.”
As inflation continues to put pressure on the cost of just about everything — from food to clothes to school supplies — Canadians across the country are preparing for the back-to-school season by turning to second-hand options as a way to save money.
Students select backpacks at a back-to-school-event at North Central Family Centre in Regina last week. Free backpacks and school supplies were offered following a donation drive. (Adam Bent/CBC)
In a questionnaire from NerdWallet, a personal finance company, 27 per cent of respondents said they will spend less on school supplies this year compared with previous years due to inflation, while 20 per cent said they had plans to purchase or buy back-to-school items second hand.
Conducted by the Harris Poll, the survey included 303 Canadian adults and is considered accurate within 6.4 per cent.
“It was a good way to start the school year, regardless of anything,” Bishop said. “Just to have teachers and the administration talk with parents, see the kids that we haven’t seen in a couple months, see if they’re excited for school.”
‘Everyone’s really feeling the pinch’
As parents across the country say they’re struggling with back-to-school costs, community organizations are trying to meet a demand that is outpacing donations.
One Calgary organization said the demand for backpacks jumped by 76 per cent this year, while the founder of a charity that operates across Newfoundland and Labrador said more than 260 people have registered — and 200 more are on a waiting list — for the organization’s back-to-school necessities program.
A line snaked outside the entrance to the Cape Breton Regional Library in Sydney, N.S., one morning last week, as the branch hosted its first kids’ “clothing swap” — where a donation gets you a shopping voucher.
On this particular day, that criteria didn’t apply, as parents and children rummaged through clothes before the beginning of the school year.
Sydney resident Natasha Kinslow, who was there with her son, said affordability has been extra challenging this year.
“Everything costs a lot. It’s overpriced. Everything. Especially being a single mom, it’s hard,” Kinslow said, adding that the clothing swap likely saved her a lot of money.
Jannette Vusich, assistant regional program co-ordinator at the Cape Breton Regional Library in Sydney, N.S., organizes donation inventory during a ‘clothing swap’ for kids last week. (CBC)
Jannette Vusich, assistant regional program co-ordinator at the library, previously organized two adult clothing swaps thanks to demand from patrons. More than 300 people attended those events, she said.
Vusich said the library received hundreds, possibly thousands, of donated items.
“There were kids with every parent, and they were going through and finding their own clothes — and they were very excited to show us the cute things they found,” she said.
“Everyone’s really feeling the pinch, and people have been telling us how excited they are to have this option available,” Vusich said, noting that library patrons and other non-profits that the library works with have stressed the financial pressures Canadians are facing.
WATCH | How to deal with back-to-school costs in this economy:
Grappling with back-to-school expenses in a tough economy
19 days ago
Duration 1:57
The rising cost of everything is forcing some families to make difficult choices, and school supplies are just adding to the troubles. Even charitable organizations have been forced to cut back.
Vusich said she thinks there’s been a gradual shift away from the stigma of poverty and that events like the one held at the library help because the whole community participates.
Thrifting has become trendy, especially among teenagers, she said, and people are generally looking for more sustainable alternatives to fast fashion — where cheap clothes are mass produced quickly and then discarded.
“I think everyone is taking home $100, $150 worth of clothing, and we really hope it helps our community with their back-to-school needs,” Vusich said.
Changing attitudes toward buying second hand
The mentality toward second-hand shopping has changed significantly over the last few years — “not just because people are looking to save money, but people want to recycle,” said Barry Choi, a Toronto-based personal finance expert.
“Anyone who’s got young children realize they grow so quickly, so why buy these [new] clothes that they’re just going to outgrow within a few months?”
Toronto-based personal finance expert Barry Choi said that his top recommendation to parents is to make a list before shopping for back-to-school clothes and supplies. (CBC)
For families who are shopping for back-to-school items, Choi said his No. 1 recommendation is to make a list beforehand and ensure you don’t already have the things your child says they need.
“The last thing you want is to show up at the store. You start shopping, you and your spouse [are] like, ‘Oh, do we need this or do we need this, do we need that?’ And you end up buying all these things that you already have.”
For Bishop, the vice-principal in Moncton, the back-to-school shop is just one way that the school can help its community during times of financial duress.
The school also partners with other community organizations to host a school supplies drive, as well as breakfast and lunch programs. It’s hoping to turn the back-to-school shop into a seasonal event.
“Kids go [to school] to learn. That’s extremely important,” Bishop said.
“But we are part of the community and we support the community, not just in academics but in all facets of a child’s life.”
Netflix on Thursday reported that its subscriber growth slowed dramatically during the summer, a sign the huge gains from the video-streaming service’s crackdown on freeloading viewers is tapering off.
The 5.1 million subscribers that Netflix added during the July-September period represented a 42% decline from the total gained during the same time last year. Even so, the company’s revenue and profit rose at a faster pace than analysts had projected, according to FactSet Research.
Netflix ended September with 282.7 million worldwide subscribers — far more than any other streaming service.
The Los Gatos, California, company earned $2.36 billion, or $5.40 per share, a 41% increase from the same time last year. Revenue climbed 15% from a year ago to $9.82 billion. Netflix management predicted the company’s revenue will rise at the same 15% year-over-year pace during the October-December period, slightly than better than analysts have been expecting.
The strong financial performance in the past quarter coupled with the upbeat forecast eclipsed any worries about slowing subscriber growth. Netflix’s stock price surged nearly 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out, building upon a more than 40% increase in the company’s shares so far this year.
The past quarter’s subscriber gains were the lowest posted in any three-month period since the beginning of last year. That drop-off indicates Netflix is shifting to a new phase after reaping the benefits from a ban on the once-rampant practice of sharing account passwords that enabled an estimated 100 million people watch its popular service without paying for it.
The crackdown, triggered by a rare loss of subscribers coming out of the pandemic in 2022, helped Netflix add 57 million subscribers from June 2022 through this June — an average of more than 7 million per quarter, while many of its industry rivals have been struggling as households curbed their discretionary spending.
Netflix’s gains also were propelled by a low-priced version of its service that included commercials for the first time in its history. The company still is only getting a small fraction of its revenue from the 2-year-old advertising push, but Netflix is intensifying its focus on that segment of its business to help boost its profits.
In a letter to shareholder, Netflix reiterated previous cautionary notes about its expansion into advertising, though the low-priced option including commercials has become its fastest growing segment.
“We have much more work to do improving our offering for advertisers, which will be a priority over the next few years,” Netflix management wrote in the letter.
As part of its evolution, Netflix has been increasingly supplementing its lineup of scripted TV series and movies with live programming, such as a Labor Day spectacle featuring renowned glutton Joey Chestnut setting a world record for gorging on hot dogs in a showdown with his longtime nemesis Takeru Kobayashi.
Netflix will be trying to attract more viewer during the current quarter with a Nov. 15 fight pitting former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson against Jake Paul, a YouTube sensation turned boxer, and two National Football League games on Christmas Day.
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