Traci Powers says parents pack her store each year during the state’s back-to-school sales tax holiday in August.
“There is just something about hearing ‘tax free’ that makes people shop,” said Powers, owner of the children’s clothing store Once Upon a Child in Newport News. “It’s one of our biggest weekends of the entire season.”
This year, she’s not sure what to expect.
Virginia has offered the 3-day sales tax break for more than a decade, but the legislation creating the holiday has an expiration date of July 1, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation. It’s possible legislators could revive the event during ongoing budget negotiations — but those talks have recently stalled.
In previous years, items eligible for the deal included school supplies that cost $20 or less per item, as well as clothing and footwear that cost $100 or less per item.
The tax break also applied to emergency preparedness products, like portable generators or gas-powered chainsaws. The Atlantic hurricane season stems from June 1 through Nov. 30.
Virginia sales tax is 5.3%, though Hampton Roads localities collect their own cut, bringing the tax rate up to 6% in the seven cities and 7% in York County, James City County and Williamsburg.
Gretchen Heal, vice president of government affairs for the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, said the holiday was a win-win for parents, teachers and local businesses.
“For our local businesses, they know that they can look forward to that weekend and having increased sales on those items,” she said. “I think next year it will be something that legislatively we look at and ask our local legislators to consider carrying a bill to bring it back.”
Heal said she expects larger shops like Target will feel an impact, as well as smaller stores that cater to children.
Powers said she’s been brainstorming ways that might entice customers to come out even without the tax break. Her store sells a variety of items for children, including shoes, clothing and backpacks.
“When we think about back to school shopping, that weekend was like our Black Friday,” she said, explaining she doesn’t want to lose that momentum.
But it’s not just her business she’s concerned about: Powers said many of her customers have shared that it can be a financial struggle to prepare their children for school each year.
“A lot of our customers are hard working but lower-income families,” she said. “Trying to get the basic school supplies and then the new clothes they need because the kids are growing and it’s a new year; it can really put a lot of families in a pinch.”
Katie King, katie.king@virginiamedia.com
