London, UK — July 23, 2013 —
• Over half of British mums would buy designer clothes for a baby or child under 10 yrs old
• A quarter of mums feel pressure to keep up with friends’ stylish tots in the trend stakes
• Harper Beckham was voted the most stylish celebrity tot
• Buggies are the big ticket item for most mums
• Over a third of British mums would like Kate Middleton to design or collaborate on a line of clothing
This week the baby market is buzzing with the arrival of a new Royal Prince. With 700,000 babies born each year, the UK ‘baby shower’ market alone contributes over £88 million to the economy annually. With all eyes on the 3rd in line for the throne, today Rakuten MediaForge, the leading display and retargeting company owned by Rakuten Marketing, reveals research into the booming baby market and the pressure on new mums to keep tots stylish.
Stylish Mums and Designer Babies
Princess Kate isn’t the only mum to be scrutinised for maternity and baby wear choices. Research suggests that one in four mums feel under pressure to ensure their kids keep up with friends in the style stakes. As a result, over half of British mums would buy designer clothes for a baby or child under 10 years old. When it came to designer investments, one in six mums would spend over £100 on one item of designer clothing for their child and a quarter of mums would spend £60 or more on an item for a special occasion.
Designs on Celebrity Babies
Famous mums in the media are fuelling these designer baby purchases, the survey revealed that Victoria Beckham’s daughter, Harper was the celebrity baby whose style mums most admire, with Jamie and Jules Oliver’s children voted next most stylish. When it came designer clothing lines, Kate Middleton was the mum other mothers would most like to see design or collaborate on a new line of clothing, followed by A list actress Kate Winslett and Tom Cruise’s ex Katie Holmes. The Kardashian sisters, Kourtney and Kim, were the celebs that mums least wanted to see creating a fashion line, netting just 9% of the note collectively.
Maternity Wear and Nesting
When it came to kitting themselves out during pregnancy, a third of mums felt let down by maternity designers, stating that maternity clothes available lacked fashion and style. In fact a quarter went as far as to describe ranges as ‘disappointing’ and lacking any style at all.
Joining Kate Middleton and the Bugaboo brigade, the biggest single baby investment for most expectant mums is their pram, with 38 percent of mums naming this the big ticket item of their pregnancy, ahead of the baby crib, car seat and decorating the baby’s room. Nesting preparations only went so far, with half of British mums stating they were too nervous to buy pink or blue items, investing in gender neutral gifts only.
Mark Haviland, MD at Rakuten Marketing commented: “This is an exciting time for the Prince and Princess, and thanks to them, it is for the baby wear and fashion industry as well. Kate Middleton is already a style icon for women around the world and as celebrity mums continue to inspire shoppers, the online channel will become increasingly powerful for marketers. As it stands 96% of mums shop for their children online with over half (57%) getting inspiration from social discovery sites like Pinterest and networks like Facebook and Twitter. We wish them well in the coming days and look forward to celebrating a happy and healthy (and stylish) mother and baby.”
About the research
Rakuten MediaForge surveyed 2,000 mums with children under 10 years old on their attitudes to fashion, shopping and buying for a new baby. This included 1,000 British women and 1,000 American women. The data was collected by Redshift Research in July 2013.
– See more at: http://www.linkshare.co.uk/news/2979
