For medium-low range products, on the other hand, the Covid emergency led to a drop in prices
In 2020, explains Codacons, which carried out a first sample survey analyzing the rates charged by large retailers, shops and e-commerce platforms – the price of a branded backpack reaches 180 euros, while for a designer case (with pens, pencils, eraser and markers) spending reaches the peak of 55 euros. Another item that affects the outlay for the kit is that relating to the diary, which this year exceeds 22 euros for the most famous brands.
Therefore, if the Covid emergency with its depressive effects on household consumption has led to a containment of prices for medium-low-range products, but the same cannot be said for high-end brands, which on the contrary have suffered adjustments of the upward price lists. The disbursement for complete school material, according to the association, will reach 530 euros per student on an annual basis during the 2020/2021 school year, to which must be added the cost for textbooks, another item that will heavily affect the portfolios of Italian families, which varies according to the level of education and the school, with the overall expenditure borne by families which – including equipment and books – can easily reach € 1,130 per student.
However, the Codacons points out, even on school spending it is possible to save significantly and reduce costs by 40%: just do not chase trends and check prices, since in supermarkets you can save up to 30% compared to stationery. And again: do not immediately buy everything you will need over the course of the year, but wait above all for notebooks and pens. Finally, for more technical equipment (from compasses to dictionaries), it is good to wait for the instructions of the professors, in order to avoid unnecessary or deficient purchases.
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