Nearly every baby brand fantasizes of having their dream retailer come knocking on their door and begging to stock their products. We wanted to drill down and find out what perks up a buyer’s ears for baby and kids products.
We had the pleasure of chatting with Anke, Senior Merchandiser for Baby and Kids at Well.ca. We wanted to know what you can do as a brand to make a great impression on baby retailers.
Anke stressed that, “baby is so ‘of the moment’ and then something else comes along. Its so fickle – if you can sustain your brand in this environment you’re doing a great job”. Keeping this in mind, we wanted to expand on this topic of how brands can stay relevant and get in front of baby retailers. We picked Anke’s brain about what makes a brand rise above the rest and what stands out to her as a baby buyer.
When you see products explode in popularity, what similar characteristics do they typically have?
Anke: They are usually items that are unique to the market and fill a need. When parents try them and love them they can’t wait to share their findings with other parents! The brands themselves also play a huge role in how they position themselves in the market and what kind of PR coverage they get.
For example, we recently launched The Honest Company and it fills a unique niche in the marketplace: Non-toxic baby and household products that are also beautifully designed and packaged. They’ve also done a brilliant job at marketing their products.
What catches your eye as a baby buyer? What do you look for?
I look for products that are designed well and serve a purpose. In the instance of body care, food or health, I look for products that contain quality ingredients and are packaged well. Canadian buyers are looking to buy Canadian right now, so theres huge focus on looking for products in our own country. A few up and coming Canadian brands that have stood out to me are Petite Pehr and Sleepy Owl.
What do you think are the major differences for baby brands in selling online vs. selling in-store?
When shopping online you lose the sensory experiences of shopping in store. For example you can’t touch or feel an item. An item therefore typically needs to be established in the marketplace before it starts to sell well online. We rely a lot on customer reviews of products to lend decision support when customers are deciding which items to purchase for themselves.
Emma is Marketing Director at Hubba. A quintessential early adopter, Emma is constantly exploring how emerging technologies can connect people and solve problems, specifically with retail tech.
To find out more about trends in the online baby category, don’t miss Profitero’s webinar on November 12 with dunnhumby and content26: The Online Baby Category – A Gateway to eCommerce: