Turning Back-to-Class Shoppers into Brand Loyalists with Sam’s Club MAP

Make your brand part of a key seasonal moment for families

Two young boys running playfully in front of a yellow school bus on a sunny day.

Back-to-class shopping sets the tone for a school year’s worth of supplies, lunches, learning, and fun. It’s one of parents’ biggest opportunities to make a direct impact on their kids’ time at school. That means parents are looking for the products their kids need from the brands they love.

Families shopping for kids in K-12 plan to spend about $875 on clothing, shoes, school supplies, and electronics¹. While college students often shop for themselves, bringing their own priorities to bear, they also set the tone for their upcoming school year with the contents of their shopping carts — planning to spend about $1,365 on back-to-class shopping¹.

A family shopping together in a Sam's Club store, browsing aisles filled with various products and bulk items.

Why back-to-class is key for advertisers

When it comes to value for advertisers, the sheer sales volume of back-to-class shopping speaks for itself. Yet the value of the season goes far beyond an immediate boost in revenue for brands that can secure a coveted spot in bookbags around the nation.

Back-to-class shoppers for K-12 are looking to fuel and gear up their kids with products they’ll be excited to bust out from their bookbag or lunchbox. That means our members could be more receptive to receiving new messages from your brand that show off your items!

The brands that college students encounter during their early days of financial independence can play a meaningful role in shaping long-term preferences and loyalty. And though they may tend to be frugal during their years at college,² they’re likely to have much higher spending power in the decades that follow.³

How Sam’s Club MAP helps you reach back-to-class shoppers

Sam’s Club members aren’t just shopping — they’re stocking up with purpose. Here are some recent trends among Sam’s Club members during back-to-class season:

Fruit snacks skyrocket by 84%⁴

Kids’ snack bars soar by 50%⁴

Fall pants and school uniform essentials grow by 16% and 33% respectively⁴

Other top back-to-class categories at Sam’s Club in recent years have included:

Office supplies

Personal tech

Storage containers

Non-alcoholic beverages

Bakery items

Deli

Toiletries

Fresh produce

Making your brand part of the back-to-class shopping season means securing a unique — and uniquely powerful — position in a key seasonal moment for both parents and young learners.

We’re proud to say that 60% of members do their school year prep at our Clubs⁵. Working with Sam’s Club MAP means much more than just unlocking access to members after they walk through our doors. Here are three ways we’ll help you build relationships that start with back-to-class and last for decades to come.

#1: Omni Experiences

The Sam’s Club MAP Back-to-Class Omni Experience is a one-of-a-kind activation that combines digital media with in-club activations. These immersive experiences include events in Sam’s Club parking lots and pop-up events inside the Club. With custom event activities, sampling, signage, and the ability to merchandise select items, we can help bring your brand to life physically and digitally.

A child is engaged in drawing playful doodles on a wall, illustrating artistic talent and imagination.

#2: Scan & Go™ Display Ads

Sam’s Club MAP is the first retail media platform to integrate ads with a mobile, self-checkout app experience. This innovative capability integrates physical and digital shopping journeys to provide Sam’s Club members with higher levels of convenience. It also helps your brand reach back-to-class shoppers at the point of purchase in-club, which can drive greater conversion and incremental sales.

#3: Search & Display

Reach members as they shop throughout the Sam’s Club digital ecosystem across high-traffic pages and search results. Capture high-intent shoppers as they search for back-to-class essentials with Sponsored Products Ads and visually tell your brand’s story with Sponsored Videos. Extend your reach beyond Sam’s Club's site and app and influence the back-to-class shopping journey virtually everywhere members shop and browse.

Join in the back-to-class spirit

Ready to enroll? Don’t worry —integrating into the back-to-class shopping experience at Sam’s Club is way easier than taking an entrance exam. Even so, the next semester will be here before you know it. We’re happy to talk about all the ways Sam’s Club MAP can support your brand goals through the school year and beyond.

¹ https://nrf.com/media-center/press-releases/majority-back-class-shoppers-have-already-begun-purchasing-school-items

² https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/beyond-classroom-how-engage-students-consumers-build-djuric-zoric/

³ https://www.aplu.org/our-work/4-policy-and-advocacy/publicuvalues/employment-earnings/

⁴ Sam's Club Back to School and Category Totals and Keyword Search Trends, 2023

⁵ My Member’s Mark Micro Seasons Wave 1 fielded Oct 2022