back to school brands we love

Back to School Brands We Love

Even if you’re just wrapping up the school year and looking forward to summer break, back to school will be here before you know it. Don’t be caught off guard scrambling to get everything on your school supply list. Start thinking about stocking up now so you and your kiddos can have a stress-free start to the year.

Now is also a great time to consider the importance of school supplies for kids and communities in need. New school supplies help kids start the year on the right foot, so they can feel confident, prepared, and focused on their learning. According to Teach For America, “For students whose families cannot afford supplies, coming to school unprepared can create social and emotional challenges, in addition to putting kids at a disadvantage for learning.”

With schools increasingly placing the burden of pricey school supplies on parents and teachers, it can add even more stress to families just trying to make ends meet. In a survey by the National Center for Education Statistics, “94 percent of teachers spend their own money to stock their classrooms with the necessary supplies and resources.”

One way to give back to your community, to show appreciation for teachers, or to help kids in need, is to help offset some of the costs of school supplies with a donation. DollarDays makes it easy to give back with great deals on quality products at wholesale prices. Here are just a few of the brands we love.

Yoobi
Kids love Yoobi for their fashion-forward, cute school supplies. We love Yoobi because of their focus on giving back. For every item purchased, Yoobi donates a school supply to a child in need. Yoobi understands the importance of providing all children with the tools they need to learn and reach their potential.

Crayola
There’s a reason Crayola has been around forever, they continue to take creativity to the next level with new product offerings like window crayons, innovative craft kits, trending character designs and so much more. Kids will love completing all their assignments with new Crayola crayons and markers.

French Toast
Thanks to several different studies, school uniforms are becoming increasingly popular in schools across the country. In an article on Public School Review, “uniforms on campuses have reduced tardiness, skipped classes, suspensions, and discipline referrals among students. In addition…school pride has increased.” French Toast has got kids covered with a wide selection of the most popularly used school uniforms in bulk from basic polos to pants and everything in between.

Big Box
Big Box is a DollarDays exclusive brand with everything you’re looking for at unbeatable prices. They have all your essential bulk school supplies, making it easy to buy quality supplies that will stock the entire classroom or can be donated to your favorite cause. Big Box equals Big Savings, period.

Forward Backpack
This line of high-quality backpacks is a DollarDays exclusive. Forward Backpacks come in a variety of styles and sizes to outfit students of any age. With affordable cases of 24, they make paying it forward as easy as possible.

The costs of school supplies can add up quickly. Kids who can’t afford the right tools are not only at an academic disadvantage but are also more susceptible to feeling insecure and inadequate. With DollarDays you can find exactly what you need for your own kids at prices and quantities that make giving back a no-brainer.


Private-label Products: Bringing Value to Our Nonprofit Partners

Private-label offerings are playing an increasingly critical role in some of the country’s largest online marketplaces, with house brands now accounting for as much as 30% of all sales. This trend not only indicates changes in the way consumers shop, especially when searching by brand and price, but also presents a new challenge for online retailers seeking to remain competitive.

For DollarDays, developing affordable, private-label brands as a means to better serve its large nonprofit customer base was a no-brainer. The company launched its Big Box™ bulk school supplies line in spring of 2017, contributing to a reported sale of more than 11 million units of school supplies annually. Big Box™ encompasses a full line of high-quality, low-cost school supplies, pre-filled backpacks and pencil pouches, and flip-flops, all of which has been hand-picked by DollarDays’ in-house merchandising team. The company plans to expand the line to include additional school essentials through the end of 2018.

“We understood private labels had to become part of our go-to-market strategy,” explains Shelly Chaney, Vice President and General Manager of DollarDays. “Online shopping means our customers have the ability to compare products and have better visibility on quality and price points. With private-label lines, we can better hit these targets, giving even more value to our nonprofit partners.”

Encouraged by the success of their Big Box™ line, DollarDays next pursued the opportunity to create a backpack label that met their nonprofit partners’ needs for premium bags at an entry-level price for backpack drives and other back-to-school initiatives. The resulting Forward™ backpack line, rolled out in early 2018, features a more spacious front pocket, reinforced strap-to-bag seams and contoured, fully adjustable shoulder straps with mesh. This attention to detail helps ensure Forward™ backpacks can compete against more expensive brand-name lines.

“With our private-label brands, we’re able to customize every aspect to the needs of our very niche consumers, like nonprofits,” says Melissa Castelo, Senior Product Manager at DollarDays. “It enables us to control not only the brand positioning but the distribution and activation, as well.”

By building out its own labels, DollarDays has found new ways to differentiate itself during the search process and drive destination shopping. Additionally, the company can continue to offer national brands and remain competitive in a “good, better, best” scenario while still capturing market share with an aggressively low price point. Through the remainder of 2018, DollarDays will continue to explore other product categories that may help them increase their presence outside of school essentials.

“Consumers today expect exceptional products at a price point that is cost effective,” stated Chaney. “We’re working on cultivating other private-label lines that focus on helping our nonprofit partners meet the fundamental needs of communities around the world.”