Barking Mad

This month Pramland’s John Barker is taking a view on car seats with a look at invention, innovation and meeting current consumer trends, desires and demands.

Hi everyone, hope you are all well. I’m assuming like us you will have started to feel the effects of Black Friday and the Christmas period. The store feels quieter and customers are definitely more reluctant to part with the money they have in their wallets.

Talking from my own point of view I don’t think Black Friday went too badly. We didn’t get inundated with price matches and we actually had a fairly good week considering how it can sometimes affect footfall etc. Not saying we didn’t come across any “silly” prices but we took a view on some and ended the week with our sanity fully intact. Stock issues have continued to cause problems here and there, but they’ve been the norm for so long now that we are simply adjusting our stock holding to offset the issues. So, there you go, November was basically business as usual for us.

One exciting thing that did happen was the launch of the rather brilliant new seat from Cybex, the Anoris T! I have to admit that up to the point Cybex started dropping predicted ADAC score into the equation I wasn’t 100% sold. As soon as they dropped that HUGE bombshell (if you know, you know, if you don’t – I won’t spoil Cybex’s surprise) I literally sat up with interest and I was fully onboard. In fact, I was sat next to Kevin (Paul Strides York) and he’s a real Car Seat geek. . . .he physically shifted in his seat and his excitement was visible. Now I’m not going to turn this into a free advertorial for Cybex (much to their disappointment I’m sure) but this brilliant product ties in nicely with what I wanted to discuss this month – Car seats.

Car seats are one of the areas in our industry where you’ll find a constant flow of new inventions and innovations. As a sector car seats are probably the most important thing we sell. Our instore offerings (or online) must provide a good selection of seats to allow all customers to find something suitable for their vehicles, child and budget. Our selection needs to be as good as the knowledge and advice we provide each and every customer that asks for it. We have always operated with a curated

range of seats from a very select group of brands. Brands that offer ranges to cover 99% of what is required. We then plug any gaps with seats from brands as and when we need them. Doing it this way, as opposed to offering every seat from twenty brands allows us to ensure the knowledge of the products is as good as it can be. It also helps to prevent customers from being overwhelmed by choice. Finally it means we don’t have to carry as much stock as our offering is more concise.

It also means that our range is more fluid than perhaps others items we sell. We list and delist items regularly in order to meet demands and trends in the industry. As something new hits the market we can simply review our range and drop something that we feel will either be over looked given the new product or simply delist something that no longer sells for us. As innovation is constant in the car seat sector it means the range is constantly freshened.

For us we no longer display any none iSize car seats other than those bundled with travel systems. Even then we find many customers are happy to break up a bundle in order to benefit from the increased safety and features of an iSize seat. We have got behind iSIze fully and feel it is the best direction for the industry. With the days of R44 car seats being numbered

now is a great time, if you haven’t done so already to start the shift. From experience the vast majority of customers are not aware of either R44 or R129 and even those that are aren’t familiar with the differences. Taking the time to discuss the differences and explain the benefits reaps rewards. Customers appreciate the advice and feel genuinely happy that you’ve taken the time to consider their child’s wellbeing and safety. A good example of this would be our Venicci Tinum sales. We sell both the R44 bundle and R129 bundle but the iSize seat accounts for 95% of our sales even if it is more expensive. I think sometime retailers worry about increasing prices, they are almost apologetic about saying option a is this price but the safer option b will add £XYZ to the bundle. Why? It’s the customer’s choice and they aren’t going to storm out because you offered them choices. For a number of years now the rotating group 0/1 seat has been the king of the hill. I can fully understand why, the benefits of the rotating features are so easy to get your head around, especially if you’ve ever tried to put an unhappy toddler in a car seat before. I can’t see this changing anytime soon as parents really do like them. For us here in Hull we haven’t seen a huge demand for them in order for parents to have an extended rear We have got behind iSIze fully and feel it is the best direction for the industry. With the days of R44 car seats being numbered now is a great time, if you haven’t done so already to start the shift. From experience the vast majority of customers are not aware of either R44 or R129 and even those that are aren’t familiar with the differences. Taking the time to discuss the differences and explain the benefits reaps rewards

facing option, they choose them because of the convenience of the rotating function. In fact I would say that the majority of our Pearl and Sriona Z sales result in parents immediately moving their child in to the forward facing position – despite our advice to the contrary.

Overall I would definitely say that as a result of Mothercare closing we have seen an increase in next stage car seat sales. This is brilliant news and from conversations with many of our brands it would appear this is not something unique to us. In fact since Mothercare closed their doors it would appear that we independents have become that first stop option for expectant parents. I guess in a way this is by default due to a lack of a true national retailer in the sector. Afterall not every city or town has a Mamas & Papas or John Lewis. It puts us at the forefront and in the driving seat (no pun intended – honest) and I hope that we all take the wheel with both hands to ensure we all remain top of the tree.

So there you go that’s me done, I hope you all have a very successful December. I’ll be back next month with my annual look at my winners for 2021. I might even throw in a few losers too. . . .what’s that? John, you are the biggest loser! Charming.