National Retail Federation Chief Economist Mark Mathews discusses what purchases families are  prioritizing during back-to-school shopping

National Retail Federation Chief Economist Mark Mathews discusses what purchases families are prioritizing during back-to-school shopping

July 16, 2026 · 6 min

About this episode

Mark Mathews discusses the trends in back-to-school shopping and family spending priorities.

If it seems as though everyone is purchasing school supplies even earlier than usual, it’s not just you — one-third of back-to-school shoppers had started their shopping by early June, the highest since the question was first asked in 2018, according to the annual survey by National Retail Federation. Mark Mathews, National Retail Federation Chief Economist, joined Jeff Hamlin to discuss the latest in back-to-school shopping.

People in this episode

Host: Jeff Hamlin

Guest: Mark Mathews

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: National Retail Federation

More episodes of WPTF Afternoon News

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the WPTF Afternoon News podcast page.