Samantha Paradise is starting eighth grade in Manhattan next week, but she won’t be decked out in all new gear on the first day.

At 13, Samantha doesn’t want to be stuck with untrendy items, so she will wait to see if the Superga sneakers that were cool at summer camp are still in fashion, and whether her classmates choose JanSport backpacks or revive the Longchamp and LeSportsac bags from last year. “I don’t want to be the only one wearing a different kind of backpack,” she said.

In a shift that is upending retailers’ plans, many children, teenagers and their parents are delaying their school purchases. A desire to get the trends right accounts for some of the hesitation. But retailers and analysts say the sluggish economy and unusually hot weather have also made for a surprisingly slow start to the back-to-school spending season, one that was expected to be the strongest since before the recession.

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