Throwback Thursday: Back-to-school shopping at Independence Mall in the 1980s
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — As families across the Cape Fear prepare for a new school year, this week’s Throwback Thursday looks back at what back-to-school shopping looked like more than 40 years ago.
The latest edition of the WWAY archive series revisits stories from 1983 and 1984, when families filled Independence Mall searching for new clothes, the latest fashion trends and emerging technology for students.
The first story, from August 1983, showed families shopping for school clothes, with designer jeans among the year’s most sought-after items.
One young shopper said seeing friends again was just as exciting as buying new outfits.
“I love it because I get to see all my new friends and I get to wear all my new clothes,” the child said.
Parents interviewed in the story said the higher price of designer clothing was worth it if it lasted through the school year.
One year later, WWAY returned to Independence Mall as fashion trends continued to evolve. Music videos on MTV were influencing what students wanted to wear, including outfits inspired by pop superstar Michael Jackson.
“I bought a whole lot of Michael Jackson stuff,” one young shopper said. “They’re fancy, and they’re shiny, and they’re way out.”
Parachute pants, designer labels and battery-powered light-up sweatshirts were among the popular styles featured in the report.
The final archive story takes viewers to September 1984, when home computers were beginning to change the way students learned outside the classroom.
Educational software offered lessons in subjects ranging from math and language to music, shapes and telling time.
“Some children can really learn with them and start using computers at the very early ages of three, four, and five,” one expert said.
Today, laptops, tablets and other digital devices have become common items on many families’ back-to-school shopping lists.
Throwback Thursday is a weekly WWAY series highlighting memorable stories from the station’s archives and connecting them to life in the Cape Fear today.
