Life & Work

Last-minute school shopping tips

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The time to shop is short and some shops might close on Sunday, so you have be smart to save on time and the stress and frustration that come with being in crowded shops. PHOTO | EMMA NZIOKA

If you are not finished with your children’s back-to-school shopping on this last Friday before schools reopen, you are not alone.

With only the weekend to go, you are likely to find yourself and plenty of other parents with their children trying to fit uniforms at a crowded school uniforms retail shop, in a long queue at the supermarket or at the bank to buy a banker’s cheque for the fees.

These are some of the disadvantages of preparing your children at the last minute for school. Another notable one is the sudden price increase that comes with the rush. Serah Chege, a parent of a seven-year-old joining class two, noticed this when she bought a textbook she had missed the first time she did her shopping in early December. Always an early shopper, she noted the book’s price had increased by seven per cent.

“When I asked why, the attendant told me each time they run out of stock, new stock come with a price increase,” she says.

If one is to go with this premise, January will definitely be having lots of new stock. Be prepared to pay the price.

The time to shop is short and some shops might close on Sunday, so you have be smart to save on time and the stress and frustration that come with being in crowded shops. It calls for patience, particularly at this time when majority of school shopping is done.

Consider the outskirts

Parents tend to end up in the same shops in the central business district; Savani’s Bookshop or School Outfitters for school uniforms, along Duruma Road. In Westlands, Textbook Centre (TBC) at Sarit Centre is also a popular stop.

Doing a bit of Internet search and looking at what other malls in the city outskirts have will save you the hassle of coming into the city or going to popular shops where there will definitely be crowds. Again, with so many malls, popular school supply businesses have opened branches around the city and in the outskirts.

Last minute

Take TBC, for example. It has branches in different malls; Junction, Galleria and Thika Road Mall. If you live in Lang’ata or Karen, you have a mall to go to for your last minute textbooks and stationery supplies. Also do not ignore the little bookshops and school uniform outfitters in your estate or the local shopping centre, they might have what you are looking for.

For uniform and shoes, it is best to go with the children so they can fit the clothes and shoes and save you the trouble of ending up with the wrong sizes.

“I always buy a size bigger so that they can grow into both the uniform and shoes. Otherwise one would be forced to shop every term,” says Serah.

Maureen Sitati, a mother of three, says that it is important to recycle the books and uniform if your children are in the same school.

For the trousers, buy a slightly longer one so that your child can grow into it. For shoes, she traces the children’s bare feet on paper then uses that to get the right sizes without having to go with them to shop. The most important measurement to get is from the big toe to the heel.

“Go to the bookshop between eight and 10am before the shops get crowded. Then it is always a good idea to split the responsibility; one parent can go to the bookshop while the other goes to buy the uniforms,” she says.

Children

If you have to shop with your children, Maureen suggests carrying snacks and water or else spend most of the time in restaurants eating. She adds that when children are hungry, they will get cranky.

If you do not want to go with your children to the supermarkets to avoid spending money you had not budgeted for, make a list, go over it with them and go on your own.

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