Home Desks See Shortage as School Year Begins

Credit: RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post

Parents may need to get creative in providing their kids a work space.

As school years begin around the United States and it becomes increasingly clear that sending students and teachers back isn’t yet safe, parents have been required to create designated learning spaces for their children at home. These spaces include the usual school suspects: storage for stationary, a stand for a laptop, a whiteboard for writing assignments, and a desk and chair to put it all on. However, as the country’s parents have come to the realization that they need desks all at the same time, the demand has begun to outstrip the supply.


Several retailers, both general like Target and Amazon and specializing in furniture like Staples and Office Depot, have been reporting shortages of work desks and chairs. Many desks, especially cheaper, smaller ones intended for children, are currently on back order, with some retailers unsure as to when they will be receiving more. It’s a situation that echoes the shortages of toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and masks from the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Analytics company Profitero conducted an empirical search to determine the exact growth of office furniture shopping. Based on their findings, from July 11 to August 15, Amazon searches for “desk” rose 600%, behind only face masks as the most searched item on the site. Searches for “kids desk” were even higher, measuring in at a 3783% increase.

“Supply and demand have been at tremendous odds this year, and back-to-school is no different,” Profitero president Sarah Hofstetter told USA Today. “The biggest difference is that it’s easier to find crayons and whiteboards than it is to find the less obvious yet most necessary items for home schooling or hybrid learning, like desks for students.”

Due to both the surge and demand and delays caused by the pandemic, some retailers project that their most popular desk models will be out of stock until October at the earliest.

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