The first month of the school year is almost over. After a carefree summer holiday, children are gradually drawn into the usual school rhythm of life. And while they were resting, parents were rushing to get their daughters and sons ready for school – as Sber Bank (Belarus) spending statistics for August eloquently demonstrate.
To check what Belarusians primarily purchased on the eve of September 1, Sber specialists compared various categories of spending by their clients in August with average values and looked at which of them experienced the most noticeable growth last month. As expected, many of them turned out to be closely related to preparation for school.
Thus, only the approaching school year can explain the sharp growth in the “Books and stationery” category – simultaneously in the average receipt (+64%), the number of transactions (+51%) and the amount of payments (+145%). If we talk about absolute rather than relative indicators, the average bill for regular months was about 10 rubles, and in August it reached 16.35 rubles. The maximum amount of purchases in this category made by one client reached 2096.75 rubles.
The number of transactions using Sber cards in the “Children’s Products” category increased by 31%. At the same time, the increase in the amount of transactions here was 47%. The average bill, although not very significantly, still also increased: from 21 to 23.61 rubles (+12%). The record amount spent in this category in August was 2,356.49 rubles. Let us remind you that the category “Children’s goods” also includes furniture – and every schoolchild needs a comfortable desk and the right chair that meets orthopedic requirements.
The next thing parents worry about on the eve of the school year is school and seasonal clothing and shoes. Here, the number of transactions in August on Sber cards increased by 26%, and in their amount the increase was 32%. The average bill increased by 6%: from 56 rubles to 59.1 rubles. The record amount of spending on clothes and shoes reached 13,917 rubles!
And finally, another category for which an increase in spending was noticeable in August is equipment. Which is understandable: even a first-grader at school needs a smartphone or at least a push-button phone to communicate with parents, and the older the child, the more tasks he has to complete on a laptop or computer: from searching for the necessary information on the Internet to preparing presentations and reports. So it is not surprising that on the eve of September 1, the increase in the number of transactions on Sber cards in the “Technology” category was 14%, and in the amount of these transactions – 35%. The average check increased by 18%: if in normal months its size is 82 rubles, then in August this figure was 96.97 rubles. The maximum expenditure on equipment in August using the Sber card reached 19,200 rubles.
But judging by the figures, parents preferred to buy flowers for the ceremonial ceremony not in advance, but directly on September 1: in August, there was no significant increase in spending in this category. The increase in the number of transactions compared to the usual level was 13%, and the average check increased by 7%. By the way, the average amount that Sber customers spend on bouquets in August was 31.15 rubles. And the maximum reached 1,722 rubles.
It is interesting that a significant part of pre-school purchases is increasingly moving online. It is this fact that can explain the surge in the increase in the number of transactions paid with Sber cards and their amount in the OZ.by application. Here the increase in the amount of transactions was 72%, and in their number – 61%.
