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There’s a Buyby Boom going on!

Cool Mum Hunting’s guide to making the most of the new parent to parent marketplace…

 Now I’m happy to shop in ‘Primarni’ for myself but when it comes to my kids, I’m a brand addict (and it doesn’t just stop at their clothes). But I’m not alone. Even in belt-tightening times where austerity is the new virtue, there’s one thing the GBP (that’s Great British Parent) finds it hard to scrimp on – their kids.

 We’ve all heard that annual survey calculating it costs hundreds of thousands to raise a child (£201,809, apparently). But whilst disposable incomes are dwindling, our desire for pricey designer prams (and the rest) seems to continue apace. Pre-baby we’d have set our hearts on accessorising with a Mulberry Alexa, now we’re all about £300 nappybag arm candy (independent boutique Mummy & Little Me reports sales of designer changing bags are 300 times higher than in 2006).  

 So, to balance what we want for our kids (/ourselves?) with what’s best for our bank balance, British parents are turning wheeler dealer. We’re using a combination of big value buys, second hand savvyness and sales skills Lord Sugar would be proud of, to kit out our kids from nought – adulthood….for less. Despite some major baby retailers apparently feeling a slight recession pinch, the new parent-to-parent market is thriving. That’s right, Britain’s parents have started their own ‘Buyby Boom Economy’ (we reckon the market is worth £210 million pa and will grow a further 30% in 2011)…..

 One of the few win-win situations to come out of the recession for parents, the rules of the ‘Buyby Boom’ are simple: By picking the right brands new, you can be seen with the best…and then sell it on to free-up cash for your next big purchase. And by picking up quality brands second hand, you can enjoy the benefits of designer products, without the designer price tag, freeing up cash for those big ticket items that you only want brand spanking new.

Cool Mum Hunting reckons the keyword here is “Residual Value” and we’ve done some digging around so you can really make the most of it. Residual Value is a phrase usually reserved for our cars but with some designer prams setting you back the same as a second hand Golf, it’s no wonder it now applies to parenting products as much as vehicles. Pushchairs lead the way in the market but desirable high chairs, clothes and toys all also hold value well.

Joanna Pearce, who runs Nappy Valley, a quality nearly new website comments, “Priced correctly, sought-after brands and products will sell almost as soon as they’re listed. If it’s stylish, practical and well made, plus will look as good as new after a clean, items hold value well and the re-sale value is very high. Stokke Tripp Trapp, Bumbos and Bugaboo Cameleons are all good examples.”

Helen Taylor of Pushchair Trader agrees, “Bugaboo, Quinny and Phil & Teds are always popular makes but currently top of the second-hand price war on our site is an iCandy Peach Blossom at £700.”

Buying and selling kids products isn’t confined to those traditionally seen as needing to watch their wallets either. In London’s still-affluent Nappy Valley (where the streets are paved with JoJoMamanBebe and a 3-bed house will set you back at least half a million pounds), the second-hand baby economy is thriving.

Whereas once second hand meant shabby, smelly charity shops, now there is a wealth of quality services to connect buyers with quality, must-have purchases at must-buy prices. Joanna Pearce, whose website Nappy Valley is dedicated to the area, says “Sales have increased 40% in the last 12 months. We’re seeing parents sell their Bugaboo Chameleon to buy a Phil & Teds, when they have a second baby. Then they sell the Phil & Teds on once their first child can walk everywhere.”

Helen Taylor, editor of Pushchair Trader, a site set up for new and second-hand pushchair sellers and buyers, agrees, “There’s no one area of the country where used sales are strongest. Nowadays, anyone is open to a bargain”.

Meanwhile, parenting powerhouse charity the NCT reports that 50,000 parents sold at their Nearly New Sales in the last year. Over £3.04 million was spent, earning the 50,000 sellers £2 million (and the charity over a million pounds) and saving buyers an average of £54.50 on purchases.

And it’s not a case of being exclusively a seller or exclusively a buyer. Parents from high powered executives to stay at home mums tell us they’re picking a mixture of what they want to buy new and what they’re happy to buy second-hand to make their money go furthest.

So, thanks to the ‘Buyby Boom’, conspicuous consumption seems as strong as ever, at least where our kids are concerned. We just now have the option of it costing us a lot less – the thing to remember is to choose products with high residual value when we buy new. At Cool Mum’s House, we like shiny new things probably even more than the next person and we especially like a new excuse to give the Cool Dads about why a £££ purchase was, in fact, a good investment. 

 Cool Mum Hunting’s ten top “Residual Value” purchases:

Five places to make money from your old baby products:
Here are five great services to check out, whether you’re buying or selling:

 How to sell second-hand children’s items for a good price / how to find great second-hand items:
Cool Mum Hunting’s tips for making the most of the ‘Buyby Boom’

 Sellers:

• If you know you’ll be selling something on, buy it in a colour you know everyone will like (eg black will sell better than lime green) or in a sought-after limited edition version
• Don’t be greedy – you can often get about 50% of the original purchase price back when you sell-on, however you are likely to put off buyers if you begin with a high starting price. If you’re selling on eBay, consider auctioning without a reserve price, if you can afford to. It can attract more bidders and push the price as high or higher as the reserve you would have set
• Take a range of good pictures of the item to attract the biggest possible number of potential buyers
• If rather than the odd sale, you’re building an empire, you should probably check out any tax liability etc

 Buyers:

• Choose items you know will have been well made and still in good condition after their first owner
• Take advantage of auction tools available to you and check out Goofbay, which has tools to maximise your chances of an eBay winning bid and to find items selling for less than normal
• Remember if you pay a little more for an item in very good condition you may well be able to sell it on again (some people have even reported selling items bought second-hand at a profit!)
• Do check out the latest safety advice and don’t buy items experts recommend you buy only new (cot matress, car seats etc)

Thanks to Joanna Pearce at Nappy Valley , William and Helen at Pushchair Trader, Nicola at the NCT and Vicky at Mummy & Little Me  for their contributions to this feature.

Image credits

<p><a href=”http://www.freedigitalphotos.net”>Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p>

<p><a href=”http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=1152″>Image: jscreationzs / FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p>

<p><a href=”http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=1556″>Image: nuttakit / FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p>

<p><a href=”http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=905″>Image: Pixomar / FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p>

Feature (C) Mary McGovern, Cool Mum Hunting