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From just after midnight tonight through Sunday at midnight, the state’s 6% sales tax and local sales taxes will be waived on certain purchases, including clothing, shoes, school supplies, computers, bed linens and more. The state’s annual sales tax holiday weekend is meant to provide a small break for back-to-school shoppers. In recent years, tax savings have totaled about $2.8 million.
Staff Report
Published Aug. 6, 2009
South Carolina’s annual sales tax holiday weekend, meant to give shoppers a small break on back-to-school items, begins Friday.
From just after midnight through Sunday at midnight, the state’s 6% sales tax and local sales taxes will be waived on certain purchases, including clothing, shoes, school supplies, computers, bed linens and more. The S.C. Department of Revenue has posted a list of eligible items here.
In recent years, the holiday has saved shoppers and cost the state about $2.8 million, according to the Revenue Department.
J.J. Darby, South Carolina director of the National Federation of Independent Business, said he expects the tax holiday weekend to help small businesses hurt by the recession.
“Sales tax holidays are like the day after Thanksgiving,” he said. “They really get people excited and in the mood to shop, and that’s exactly what our economy needs right now.”
But in a tough economy, whether the small tax break is enough to get people in a shopping mood remains to be seen.
The back-to-school season is one of the busiest times of the year for some retailers. But the season slowed last year compared to past years and is expected to be even slower this year, according to Britt Beemer, CEO and Founder of America’s Research Group, a retail research firm based in Charleston.
Beemer forecasts that back-to-school spending will drop 8.5% to 12% from last year — and last year’s back-to-school sales were down about 5% from the year before.
Projections are based on the group’s survey of 1,000 people, conducted in July. The survey found that 34.4% of parents plan to spend less this year compared to last year.
Another finding: 33.4% of parents planned to spend more than $400 on back-to-school items. Last year, 47% of parents said they would spend more than $400.
The National Retail Federation also forecasts that back-to-school spending will fall this year, based on a separate survey the organization conducted, also in July. The NRF found that the average family with students in kindergarten through grade 12 plans to spend $548.72 on school merchandise, a decline of 7.7% from last year.
But the organization found that spending on electronics, including computers, will increase by 11% this year.
Apple Stores in states with back-to-school sales tax holidays, including the store on King Street in Charleston, are making special preparations for what could be a busy few days, a spokeswoman said.
Stores have offered to schedule personal shopping appointments in advance of the weekend, helping parents determine which computers best fit their students’ needs. Then, the stores reserve those computers for pickup during the sales tax holiday weekend.
Apple stores also are planning extended store hours for the weekend. The King Street store will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
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