College Students Holiday Shopping Plans

November 18, 2016 (OBERLIN, OH) – College students are hoping for clothing and shoes this holiday season and would rather shop for their pets than their boss according to a recent survey of college students conducted by OnCampus Research , the research arm of the National Association of College Stores. Results from the 2016 survey include:

• College students hope to receive clothing/shoes (58%), money (58%), and gift cards (52%) this holiday season.

• Most students intend to buy a little something for their parents (86%), siblings (75%), friends (61%), significant others (48%), or other family members (30%) for the holidays. Just 5% of student respondents indicated they either don’t celebrate these holidays or won’t be giving gifts.

• Twenty-four percent of students plan to purchase gifts for their pets, while only 10% will buy for a co-worker and only 7% say they’ll give a gift to their boss.

• On average, students plan to spend $244 to buy about 11 items to give to eight or nine people on their shopping list.

• They plan to purchase clothing/shoes (60%), bath/beauty products (44%), homemade gifts (44%), gift cards (43%), toys/games (38%), jewelry/watches/fashion accessories (34%), books (31%), and movies/video games (30%).

About The National Association of College Stores

The National Association of College Stores (NACS), headquartered in Oberlin, Ohio, is the professional trade association of the $10 billion campus store industry. NACS provides education and other resources that help its member stores support student success, the campus experience, and the academic missions of higher education institutions. The association represents all campus stores, which include nearly 4,000 campuses in the U.S. and Canada, and approximately 1,000 industry-related companies that supply course materials and other merchandise and services to campus stores.