As consumers look for ways to cut back their retail spending, many are willing to make sacrifices on product quality, but not when it comes to buying products for their babies.
For the PYMNTS Intelligence report “Consumer Inflation Sentiment Report: Consumers Cut Back by Trading Down,” researchers surveyed more than 2,000 United States consumers to better understand their outlook on the American economy and how it affects their spending.
The results revealed 58% of consumers had switched to buying from merchants with lower prices for at least one retail product. Yet only 8% of consumers who bought baby supplies reported trading down from their preferred merchants, a smaller share than said the same for any other type of retail product.
Consumers want baby supply retailers that simplify the often intimidating process of being a new parent.
“We are a specialty player in the baby space,” Raina Khumush, senior director of marketing and eCommerce at Buybuy Baby, told PYMNTS in an interview. “So obviously, we are not The Everything Store, where you’re going to find every single item or product that you can imagine. What we’re trying to do is create specialty, curated experiences and products. So, we don’t necessarily want to offer every single product that’s available in a particular category. … We want to offer what makes sense for our customers.”
Khumush observed that the extensive selection available on platforms like Amazon can be particularly overwhelming for new parents. With “hundreds of different highchairs” to consider, for example, a bit of guidance can be helpful.
Kohl’s, for its part, is trying to capture this same opportunity by expanding its Babies “R” Us store-in-store partnership to more locations.
“This partnership provides a significant growth opportunity in a large category that has been displaced in recent years and builds on our existing assortment while broadening our reach with younger customers,” Kohl’s CEO Tom Kingsbury said on an earnings call in March.
As consumers navigate the complexities of retail spending amidst economic shifts when it comes to purchasing products for their babies, quality is non-negotiable, and retailers are adjusting their offerings to meet this demand.
For all PYMNTS retail coverage, subscribe to the daily Retail Newsletter.
We’re always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.
Learn More