focus FEEDING
Food for
thought Image courtesy Bibado
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v eryone needs to eat! However, there are many anxieties new parents have - whether this be breast/bottle feeding or weaning. Fortunately as a product category, brands have it covered! Nursery Today asked Vital Baby’s Senior Product Development Coordindator, Hannah Juniper what are the common anxieties new parents have when it comes to breast/bottle feeding, weaning and self feeding? “We all know that breastfeeding baby is nature’s way, however the reality is that it is not always possible for mum to breastfeed their baby for a number of reasons. Sometimes the stigma around bottle feeding and pressures to breast feed can lead to anxieties around bottle feeding. Am I doing the best for my baby? Will bottle feeding harm my baby’s development? Should I feed expressed Breastmilk or formula? Then comes bottle acceptance. Whilst babies are ‘hardwired’ to suckle, not every baby is compatible with every bottle, so parents are then faced with the challenge of finding the right bottle for their baby with just trial and error to help them.” And what about weaning, does this also cause worries for parents? “Just when parent’s think they’ve got it cracked, weaning comes along!” said Hannah. “Weaning can be an overwhelming journey for parents and babies. Babies are exploring new and exciting tastes and textures and parents are naturally concerned that their baby is getting the correct foods with the right nutritional values. The key to successful and worry-free weaning is to be able to relax and enjoy the fun. For that, your product choice is very important.” Bibado’s Founding Director, Rachel Wood agrees commenting: “I think many new parents go through similar emotions and anxieties when feeding their baby. Parents have gone through one of the biggest life changing events possible, by bringing a new life into the world. Feeding our babies, when you
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nursery today
Feeding little ones comes with many parental anxieties - more so perhaps for first time mums especially when the transition from breast to bottle occurs, then weaning onto solids and teaching infants how to self feed. We spoke to those in the know for their thoughts on this category. think about it, is probably one the most time consuming (certainly in the early days), challenging and at times a stressful part of the journey of early parenthood, although it can also be one of the most rewarding. I still get goose bumps when I remember the milky smiles I had from my daughters after a happy breast feed. I cried when eventually at the age of one my daughters no longer wanted it anymore, they were ready for the next stage. As a parent, a skill which is ever evolving, is being ready to embrace whatever it is your baby needs at the time they need it, whether or not you are ready for it. It certainly kept me on my toes in my own journey as a parent.” What about product ranges? We asked Rachel if she felt we had sufficient products available that assist. “The advantage of living in a more globalised
for co-ordinated ranges from brand names? “When designing our ranges, it was important to us that we took everyone’s needs in to account – both baby and parents.” Said Hannah. “Take our NOURISH feeding & weaning range for example - everything about weaning and feeding development is gradual and can change from week to week. One week babies struggle to bring their spoon to their mouth and the next they could be feeding themselves! Because of this, we’ve made sure that our product ranges grow with babies and parents at the same time, and that there’s a product for every stage and age.” Rachel believes modern parents are also seeking style commenting: “Aesthetics are really important to parents today, they expect ranges to look and feel the part of a modern
“Currently there are some amazing products on the market for parents in the feeding space but there is always the opportunity to improve and re-imagine what we can do to help parents and babies on the journey into the wonderful world of food - and the messy curiosity and exploration that goes along with it.” Rachel Wood, Bibado society is that we have the ability to share ideas, products and services more easily than we have ever previously been able to do. As a brand we have the ability to learn from other companies which assist us to keep thinking of new ways to evolve what we do. Currently there are some amazing products on the market for parents in the feeding space but there is always the opportunity to improve and re-imagine what we can do to help parents and babies on the journey into the wonderful world of food - and the messy curiosity and exploration that goes along with it.” When we look at products available within this category, are parents looking
family aesthetic. Since we released our Handi Cutlery to match our new Bibado Coverall designs, the feedback has been amazing! Social media gives us better insight than ever into our customers tastes as we get to see our products in action in their homes, which no brands pre-social media could say.” Is innovation important in this category and well catered for when we look at the continual development of feeding products that are designed to assist parents and ease any concerns? “Innovation is hugely important.” states Rachel. “As a brand we are extremely lucky that we are deeply connected with parents today. Social media provides us with amazing levels of communication
with customers who tell us the good and the bad about our products. Through this level of insight and feedback, it gives us the opportunity to improve and refine our products, as well as create new ideas for new products which our community want. We are so pleased that they are happy to be involved, our community have always been our biggest cheerleaders as well, which is so humbling. They share in our success when we create a product which they love. “As well as this level of connection with the audience, it is also important to us to keep up to date with the thought leaders in childhood development. Experts in the fields of baby and childhood development help find new and innovative ways to engage babies in the feeding space.” While on the subject of social media, we asked Hannah whether she felt this can sometimes confuse parents? “Parents love to share experiences, gain knowledge and reassurance from each other. With so many blogs, influencers, brands and hashtags out there, it is hard for parents to get away from it and can sometimes be confusing. I guess the main thing for parents to remember is to not compare themselves to other parents too much… every baby is different, so take you’re your journey one step at a time.” What about retailer benefits to those who stock products that fall within the feeding category? We posed the question to Hannah for her thoughts. “One thing is for sure, every baby will need to be weaned at some point. So if you’re a nursery retailer or you have a nursery department in your store, you don’t want to be missing out on the sales that feeding and weaning can deliver. For stores that have historically focused on bigger purchase items, weaning can deliver easy incremental sales opportunities. There are lots of choices out there, so be sure to make your selection stand your store or section out from the crowd, giving you that critical point of difference to your competitors.”
