Meijer targets 40k Gen Zers with back-to-college events

Meijer is in the midst of “Meijer Mania,” as it welcomes about 40,000 incoming college freshman to its annual shopping party events. The retailer will have hosted 22 events at 20 colleges across the Midwest by early September.

The back-to-college events feature a DJ, photo booth and interactive contests and are designed to introduce new students to the Meijer brand, since many may not be familiar with the Midwest supercenter.

Each event hosts about 1,700 freshman who are bused from campus to their local Meijer store. Meijer provides samples and coupons and sometimes hosts big-ticket giveaways.

“Our Meijer Mania events provide new students the opportunity to shop for their first living spaces away from home and share a fun-filled bonding experience with classmates,” said Cathy Cooper, senior director of promotions and sponsorships at Meijer, in a statement. “We are pleased to partner with so many colleges and universities to help ease the transition of moving into a new living environment for these students.”

Meijer expects to sell the following classroom and dorm room essentials this back-to-school season:

• 3.8 million pounds of paper
• 1.6 pounds of apples
• 1 million pairs of socks
• 1 million individual washcloths
• 300,000 sticky notes
• 175,000 sets of sheets
• 75,000 pillows