When I asked Cora if she needed anything for her upcoming school year, her response was, "No, I have everything I need." She had managed to save a good bit of money and she still purchased everything she needed for school. Granted, she didn't need much, but I missed spending money on her (a rite of passage). Plus, I had to ask her where she had shopped this year, as she did her own shopping (another rite of passage).

I believe the only way to really keep tabs on what teens desire from the market is to have a teen in the house; otherwise, the only information you might receive about teen purchases is from media sound bites about companies they choose to highlight. For instance, I ran across several articles on 'back to school stocks' at MSN Money, BusinessWeek, and CNN Money, and they all covered basically the same information. They all carried the same warnings as well - that teens are fickle, and that the companies they listed might not benefit enough from back-to-school sales to include them in a portfolio.

I don't know if you have a teen in the house, but I'll be willing to bet that many parents avoid some of the shops on these lists simply because their prices are too high. I know that my daughter didn't visit at a few named stores listed on the BusinessWeek study, as she still doesn't consider it "cool" to shop at these stores. Outside of price, some stores aren't savvy to teen fashion and others don't represent her style.

What these articles don't mention is that teens often don't conduct their back-to-school shopping. Parents hold the purse strings in most cases, and they often believe that some of these shops are the best places to shop for teen merchandise. Unfortunately, their fingers may not be on the pulse of the American teen, especially the teen who decides to recycle and save money.

Recycling is "in" for many teens. Second-hand shops have benefited from the tax law that limits giving to merchandise that's in "good used condition or better." This limitation allows second hand or consignment shops to offer better merchandise, yet they may not charge any more than they did before the law was enacted.

The best way to discover who shops at your local consignment store is to sit outside and watch who walks in and out the door. What I discovered is that the teen-aged girls (and some guys) who shop at our local second hand shops are old enough to shop without parents. They have discretionary cash - either from work or allowances - that allows them to purchase used items, but they don't have enough cash to purchase a new item (even on sale) from nationally known chain stores.

The aberration to this theory is brought to you from my daughter, as she was taught never to purchase undergarments at second hand stores. But you won't find her at the high-end shops when she buys these items. Think large warehouse-type shopping, and you'll find her there. This is also where she purchases any pencils, notepads, and other school necessities, as you can buy several items at the larger stores for the same price as a single item at some of the stores named on the previously mentioned lists.

I want to point out that my daughter isn't poor, but that I raised her to understand the value of money. She's learned through my freelance work that this money could be here today and gone tomorrow (call it feast or famine). So, she likes to save money, and she doesn't believe in spending large amounts unless that item is valued appropriately. My daughter isn't alone in her perspective, as many of her friends also shop with these thoughts in mind.

But, I also understand that my daughter and her friends shop at these second hand stores and large discount markets for another reason - they want to differentiate themselves from the classmates who wear clothing from high-end stores. Call it rebellion, call it social snobbishness, or call it what you will - the articles I mentioned about back-to-school stocks cover only one perspective on back-to-school purchases. Perhaps this is why they offer a warning that those stocks may not perform well enough to include them in your portfolio.

I also want to point to a few questions and remarks made by these articles. As for the BusinessWeek question about whether "denim is over," the answer is "no." But why purchase a new pair of jeans when last year's pair will do - especially when holes, embroidery, patches, and other 60s styles will make those jeans work for another year or two? The teens I know have not run out of things they can do with denim - they're just smart enough to know that they can make a hole in an old pair of jeans for free rather than pay top dollar for a new pair with a hole in the leg.

As for falling sales in electronics, remember that most electronics were designed to last at least two to three years (or at least as long as the warranty lasts, as the joke goes). If everyone bought a new piece of technology last year, you probably won't see those sales go up again for another two to three years. Even then, that technology may become that "fickle" item that loses out to a newer and hotter item.

The point behind the "back-to-school" stocks is that not one company listed can truly rely on back-to-school sales to boost its numbers. Back-to-school items represent just one way to build an overall sales strategy. Additionally, teens as a group are not strong enough economically to alter a company's future. Plus, if other teens are like my daughter, those teens are more concerned about how they're going to pay for gas this next year rather than how they're going to pay for new clothes.

Until Next Week,
Linda Goin