GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Meijer is expanding its annual back to school discount to help teachers prepare for a return to the classroom.
In addition to more than 1,500 items already discounted, the Grand Rapids-based retailer is also now including office furniture and kids’ apparel in the discount.
The deal is offered to teachers through its 257 Meijer stores in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Kentucky. Meijer says it provides savings on classroom essentials like paper, pencils, folders and notebooks while addressing the issue of teachers spending their own money on supplies throughout the year to restock classrooms.
The average teacher spent approximately $745 on supplies last school year, according to AdoptAClassroom.org.
Meijer says expanding the discount to add key items like desks, bookshelves, frames, lamps and kids’ clothing will allow teachers some extra savings as they plan their personal supply needs, maintain remote workspaces in their homes and prepare their own families for the first day of school.
“Teachers proved to be heroes as they adapted lesson plans and extended the classroom into their homes during the pandemic,” said May Graceffa, Director of Back-to-School Merchandising for Meijer. “The upcoming school year may require flexibility, so finding a way to further reduce stress on their pocketbooks as they consider their own homes and families for the first day of classes led us to expand the offerings covered by this year’s discount.”
Graceffa said the notable additions of office furniture are sure to be popular this summer but notes cleaning supplies are also expected to stay top of mind.
The 15 percent discount also includes all-purpose cleaners, disinfecting sprays, hand sanitizer, hand tissues, and baby wipes, which will help teachers add sanitizers to their restocking efforts as preparation is expected to ramp up in early August.
Teachers can get the discount – in the form of a paper coupon – by presenting a current school ID at their local Meijer Customer Service desk. They are also able to take advantage of the coupon repeatedly by obtaining a new one any time they return to Meijer throughout the back-to-school shopping season.
“There is already a lot of excitement for getting back to class, so we want to do our part in helping teachers across the Midwest,” Graceffa said.
“Returning to school always holds special meaning, but thanks to local teachers this back-to-school season will represent even more as our communities take another step toward normalcy.”
For more information, please visit the Meijer Back-to-School site.
