Traditional Back-to-School shopping in the U.S. will start later this summer, but will include more shopping online (+4%) and less at national chains (-4%) and mass merchants (-8%), according to newly released research from The NPD Group. During its annual b-t-s study of consumers’ purchasing intentions, the Long Island, NY-based research firm found that more consumers are less concerned about value, price, and products that are on sale. That changing view from 2012 b-t-s should bode well for department stores (+4%) and apparel specialty stores (+4%).

As one might expect, apparel (+11%) and footwear (+9%) purchases are forecast to rise ... Log in to view full article.