Sprout School Supplies - worth it?

[Anonymous]

The Sprout School supplies service (where they source and deliver all school supplies on your behalf) is around $60 for Kindergartener....Does anyone use this service and is it worth the expense?

[Anonymous]

Our school uses sprout and most (80%+) parents order supplies. It is not the cheapest option, but it is the easiest.

[Anonymous]

Our daughter went from Elementary with the Sprout option to Middle where you just had a list of items, and a link to Amazon, Walmart, target, etc... with a filled out cart. The Sprout option is much better.

When you are linked to a cart to order items, it is often very expensive to buy a small pack of tissues, and better to just buy a mega pack and use it for several years, pencils in bulk, some items were not available, etc.. - had to make a decision on just about every item in the "cart." I much preferred the buy and forget it method.

[Anonymous]

I used sprout one year, but then had to wait in this huge long line to pick up the box. I have decided not to use it again. Why can't they just deliver it to the teacher's themselves? It was poorly done. Also the stuff in the sprout box kind of rips you off (ex 35 clorox wipes in a box instead of 200). AND environmentally, do we really need new scissors, new headphones etc if the ones from last year are ok?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I used sprout one year, but then had to wait in this huge long line to pick up the box. I have decided not to use it again. Why can't they just deliver it to the teacher's themselves? It was poorly done. Also the stuff in the sprout box kind of rips you off (ex 35 clorox wipes in a box instead of 200). AND environmentally, do we really need new scissors, new headphones etc if the ones from last year are ok?

My kids need several headphones per year and the scissors are wrecked by the end of the year. Getting new ones annually isn't wasteful in our household.

[Anonymous]

I was able to get our supplies for less than half the cost using target.com. They even autofilled the list.

[Anonymous]

We buy our own supplies, too. So much cheaper. And I do reuse scissors and headphones usually. But I understand the convienience factor. I just enjoy saving money more

[Anonymous]

It’s worth it to me - my time is money!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I used sprout one year, but then had to wait in this huge long line to pick up the box. I have decided not to use it again. Why can't they just deliver it to the teacher's themselves? It was poorly done. Also the stuff in the sprout box kind of rips you off (ex 35 clorox wipes in a box instead of 200). AND environmentally, do we really need new scissors, new headphones etc if the ones from last year are ok?

At our school the boxes are delivered directly to the school, so no waiting in lines to pick up. And headphones are optional, because they assume most families have them from previous years. For me the convenience factor is primary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s worth it to me - my time is money!

Really? It doesn’t take that long to gather up your own supplies at Target or Office Depot. You must not be concerned about the cost of anything. Lucky.

[Anonymous]

I was our school liaison for sprout. convenience is the number one factor to order through them. We deliver the boxes to the classroom at open house, so there is nothing for the parent to do other than order and pay. Sometimes it is hard finding that one odd colored folder or composition notebook, or making sure the notebook as the right number of pages.

I know some schools use this as a fundraising tool and add a small percentage to the $ others do it at cost.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s worth it to me - my time is money!

Really? It doesn’t take that long to gather up your own supplies at Target or Office Depot. You must not be concerned about the cost of anything. Lucky.

New PP. Cost is important to me but convenience is key. My time is absolutely money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s worth it to me - my time is money!

Really? It doesn’t take that long to gather up your own supplies at Target or Office Depot. You must not be concerned about the cost of anything. Lucky.

Well I do literally get paid hourly so I know what my time is worth.

[Anonymous]

I just bought mine through Sprout. I have no idea if my school uses it for a fund raiser or not, I am thrilled to have it done and sent to the school. It makes my life easier. I have one child and both my husband and I work in good paying jobs. Could I save money by going to Target? Sure, but is saving $10, maybe $20, worth digging through the piles of stuff to find what the teacher wants? Nope.

There are times I will worry about saving cash and then there are times I worry about convenience. This is a convenience issue for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just bought mine through Sprout. I have no idea if my school uses it for a fund raiser or not, I am thrilled to have it done and sent to the school. It makes my life easier. I have one child and both my husband and I work in good paying jobs. Could I save money by going to Target? Sure, but is saving $10, maybe $20, worth digging through the piles of stuff to find what the teacher wants? Nope.

There are times I will worry about saving cash and then there are times I worry about convenience. This is a convenience issue for me.

Finding crayons, paper, and other supplies at a regular store is really not hard and you don’t have to dig through stuff. Lol.