Teenage Taste Land
For the back-to-school season, Staples is tapping a new market: teens. Well, duh.
But for years, the segment wasn’t an obvious one for the office supplier. Instead Staples catered to grade school children and their parents believing that this age group spent more on school supplies. But research the chain conducted found that teens ages 15 to 17 spend $76 on average for back-to-school supplies, compared to about $55 for children ages 8 to 11. Moreover, about 47 percent of parents say that teens ages 15 to 17 decide where to shop.
So this back-to-school season, Staples is trotting out 150 items geared toward teens (think zebra-striped computer mouse) and even hired its first celebrity spokeswoman, Ashley Tisdale , a bright-eyed 21-year-old best known for her roles in “High School Musical” and the Disney show “The Suite Life of Zach and Cody.” She’s appearing on back-to-school circulars, autographing school supplies, and planning to hang out with the winner of a shopping spree sweepstakes.
“Marketing to teens allows Staples to sell a much wider selection of products, instead of basic supplies,” said Marshal Cohen , chief retail analyst at market research firm NPD Group in Port Washington, N.Y. “They can start selling some really cool things in a sexy way. They’re trying to go out of their way to say to teens, `This is the place to go.’ ”
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