Whether or not we agree with the upcoming return to face-to-face classes in Mexico, the truth is that for many businesses this measure could be an expected respite. The truth is that for many brands that move in this sector, it could be a return that goes from a “belly”, since now, the Federal Consumer Prosecutor’s Office (Profeco) has released a list of brands of school supplies that they just don’t deliver in terms of quality.
This list comes in the middle of a time when the promise of returning to face-to-face classes puts on the table an economic spill that, although it is far from exceeding what was registered for the 2019 back-to-school season, does promise the same figure.
Estimates delivered by the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco-Servytur), indicate that the return to face-to-face classes scheduled during this month could leave an economic spill of close to 82 billion pesos.
The truth is that in the face of this figure and what it could represent in the recovery process of many brands and businesses, the list delivered by Profeco has arrived, which will undoubtedly be at least reviewed by a consumer who is now especially sensitive to the cost-benefit and quality ratio when deciding to buy.
Although 36 percent of consumers say that, once the pandemic is over, according to a study by Psyma, they will buy normally when the contingency passes, the reality is that their behavior will show some discrepancies.
The factor that will play a leading role is the feeling of affectation that will translate into a peculiar demand for brands.
From Mindshare highlights that worldwide three out of ten people claim to be “very affected” economically by the effects left by the health crisis.
Sentiment is especially stronger in markets such as India (85 percent), Mexico (79 percent) and Singapore (77 percent).
Given this, it is clear that promotions, accessible prices and all those that highlight the value of the price-benefit formula will be strongly favored.
In fact, from Kantar they indicate that the percentage of people who say they “pay more attention to prices” increased from 59 percent in the early stages of the epidemic to 68 percent at the moment.
In this way, the relevance of the list provided by Profeco is evident. The agency conducted a quality and compliance study around various school supplies, where some brands simply “failed” the exam.
The investigation published in the Consumer Magazine since August considered products such as pens, liquid glues, erasers, plasticine blocks, notebooks and writing pencils.
In a timely manner, Profecó analyzed 22 notebooks professional size of 90, 100 and 105 sheets sewn and with metallic or plastic spiral, 12 pens of blue oily ink medium point, 10 liquid glues, 11 of adhesive bars, six graduated plastic rulers of 30 centimeters, nine pencils for writing, seven stick plasticine, nine school scissors and seven white erasers.
From the analysis the following results were extracted by categories where, without a doubt, some brands lose:
Pair of scissors
The brands of scissors Barrilito B60, Dietrix 7230, Dietrix 7231, Dietrix 7233 and MAE MT-5R were pointed out by Profeco for not passing in the matter of sharp parts or burrs as well as in relation to the oxidation of their materials.
For their part, the Kores and Petigon brands presented incomplete information by omitting the date of manufacture.
However, Profeco pointed out that all of them are safe for use by children as they do not have an edge angle greater than 10 degrees.
Rules
When evaluating the 12-inch rulers, the agency stated that those signed by Baco, Dietrix and Vinci broke or had splinters “when flexed at room temperature.”
Regarding the rules, OfficeMax 63328 does not present the identification of the measurement units (centimeters and inches as indicated by the Official Mexican Standard 008-SCFI-2002).
Outside of these indications, it is stated that with regard to compliance with standards, consumer information, finishes and scale accuracy, Profeco rated them “Good” and “Excellent”.
Sticky bars
Among the brands that were identified with “less useful adhesive”, Omega 8 grams stood out, which only offers 79 percent of functional product. For its part, the Bully brand presented important failures in the operation of its elevator.
The Office Depot and Norma brands were rated “Poor” in both “level of adhesive strength on paper was sufficient” and elevator performance respectively.
Three bars that failed to contract the bar: Norma stick, Omega and Office Depot, “this may be due, among other things, to the fact that the product has been on the shelf for a long time or that its container does not close hermetically, which allows the adhesive dries out and with it its adherence decreases considerably ”.
Pens
Of the 12 products studied, two Bic pens and one Kores obtained an “Excellent” rating, four from Bolex and one from OfficeMax were evaluated with a “Very Good”, one from Azzor, one from Paper Mate and one from Office Depot remained with the rating “Good”, while Pelikan was left with just a “Enough”.
The Office Depot brand pen only gave 800 linear meters of writing, while the hard glass and diamond BICs exceeded 2,000 meters, while the Azor brand gave 1,483 linear meters.
Notebooks
The notebook models that passed the test with “Enough” were Scribe Professional smooth 9650 due to the low resistance of sheets and paste; Norma Uno and SkyBook for low resistance to erasure and pastes and SkyBook for the same reasons as the previous one.
Scribe Excellence 9453, Star Workshops, Professional Sewing and Mua and Manufacturas 8-A pass with “Excellent”.
Erasers
Erasers in general are between “Excellent” and “Good”, with brands such as Dietrix, Dixon, Kores, Pelikan, OfficeMax and Office Depot standing out.
Liquid glues
The Elmers brand of glue “provides slightly less than stated content.” But in general Adherol, Dietrix, Dixon, Elmer’s, Kores, Resistol and Omega have “Excellent” adherence to paper and wood.
Block modeling clay
Those that obtained the qualification from “Excellent” to “Very Good” were brands such as Silver, Pelikan, Vinci, Scool, Combate, Colorim and Popular with “Good”.
Pencils
Paper Mate, Pelikan, OfficeMax, Office Depot and Dixon pencils scored “Excellent”, while Kores and Maped “Very Good” and Kores and Bic “Good”.