November 26, 2008
Relationship Building for Mothers and Babies
By Bernice Hurst, Managing
Partner, Fine Food Network
Activities,
convenient locations and companions with shared interests are apparently
much in demand for new mothers. So much in demand that
a number of enterprising women in London have started businesses catering
specifically for this audience.
Karen Hastings,
founder of Cupcake, was formerly a marketing director at American Express.
According to a report in The Daily Telegraph, she decided to fill
a niche for herself and her pregnant friends that would
“celebrate pregnancy and motherhood with general wellbeing.” She
believes many London women needed a place where “their transition to
motherhood could be supported” in the Sex and the City lifestyle they
were used to.
Kate Robinson,
writing in the Telegraph, describes the crèche, a wellness centre,
spa and café available to Cupcake’s 200 “glossy-haired Boden mothers.”
She quotes Ms. Hastings’ description of places for “like-minded people” able
to “enjoy and indulge motherhood.”
Taking a
leaf from private members’ clubs for families that started in the U.S.,
the intention is to provide a “community,” as described by Maggie
Bolger, founder of Maggie & Rose, a private member’s clubs for families
located in London. While conceding that the current economic climate may
make private members’ clubs a luxury, she points out that
“What we charge a week is the equivalent of three trips to Starbucks.”
Classes and
facilities, the extras offered to please customers while making money for
organizers, include mother and baby Pilates and baby language lessons as
well as ante- and post-natal exercise classes and seminars ranging from “Lose
Your Mummy Tummy” to “Mumpreneur”
workshops. For the children, there are creative play and even cookery classes
as well as an impressive array of indoor equipment.
The
social side of life needed by new mothers could be supplied by National
Childbirth Trust (NCT) groups, according to Miranda Levy, editor of Mother & Baby magazine. There are also mother
and baby groups available in neighborhoods. She agrees that new mothers
can feel isolated but is concerned that the clubs may be an expense too
far. There certainly seem to be mothers taking up the opportunity to
spend time and money on what is available to maintain their lifestyles
but how their lifestyles will change with parenthood and an economic
downturn may raise different questions.
Discussion Questions:
Are retailers missing an opportunity targeting mothers and mothers-to-be
to a greater degree? How can retailers turn mother and baby needs into
an opportunity to drive them into stores?
[Author’s
commentary] What an opportunity I missed. How frustrating! When I started
our village’s first mother and toddler group more than 30 years ago, I
charged just enough to cover rent, a cup of tea for each adult and juice
for each child. Many of the mothers and toddlers are still friends now.
I may not have made money out of it but perhaps I didn’t miss an opportunity
after all.
BrainTrust
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Discussion Questions
Poll
I believe something like this has been seen and went the way of marginal concepts…wasn’t Mothercare a shot at this a while ago?
Having said that, I think niche Retailers ARE missing the boat in not “getting” how much consumers want to be empowered and supported. In the case of the baby business, there is SO much to know and the price of failure is SO high that sufficient motivation exists for consumers to get themselves educated and empowered to be the best parent they can be. Will they pay for that? In one way or another. They may not pay outright for such an environment…but I’d be willing to bet that making your site/store a destination based on empowerment and support would be an enormous boost to existing product sales.
This speaks directly to the need for Retailers, regardless of the niche or market being addressed, to deliver demonstrable value to their target consumers. Which requires understanding what makes those consumers tick. In the case of new or expectant mothers…well, the research is out there.
These observations are not rocket science, nor are they new. The critical component is how to pay for this value-ad as a Retailer if the consumer won’t explicitly pay for them. Look around…there ARE ways to reach these consumers that don’t actually cost all that much.
There is one retailer in the US that is also singularly focused on mom, and I’m not talking about Motherhood Maternity…how about Walmart? The Cupcake premise just happens to focus on products and services that directly court mothers. Walmart is focused on mom’s relationship to the brand and all related touch points. That’s why they’ve partnered with mommy bloggers and mobile providers and it’s a big part of the retailer’s in-store Smart Network initiative.
In store, Walmart knows that if they can make everything from Tire and Lube Express to apparel more appealing to moms, they’ve won over a highly influential segment of the population (not to mention a start with a new generation of shoppers). I do think that other retailers could learn from this…that focusing relentlessly on one power niche can make complicated customer segmentation models seem scatterbrained by comparison.
As a new mom myself, and a marketing VP, the “Sex in the City” lifestyle has definitely become a cliche among my peers. In fact, it really did BEFORE we got pregnant. The economy, the environmental situation, the values we try to instill into our children are all the exact opposite of these ladies in London. We are simply looking for a place to hang out with our kids that allows us to exchange information, support each other, and let our kids have fun. Last I checked, that didn’t cost a thing.
Connecting with moms and moms-to-be, if you are a retailer with offerings for them, is an unparalleled opportunity to be relevant and will absolutely be successful if done right.
David is right on about the Blogger Moms out there–they are an increasingly active and viable force–just look at the investment capital that has poured in to them!
Many retailers are completely missing the mark on mothers-to-be and also nursing Mom’s, one of the most dramatically rising segments today in the marketplace. Baby aisles in chain drug, supermarkets, and mass merchandisers, need to create space for destination items.
For example, if retailers will turn to the mom’s blogging sites, where nursing Moms and Moms-to-be are actively conversing, sharing, and exchanging information they will learn about items such as an at-home testing strip that nursing Moms are using to screen their breast milk. And for expectant moms, a product being discussed is an at-home gender predicting product. These are the types of new innovations and destination items that do not have to be exclusive only to specialty stores.
Bernice is writing about a brilliant concept. It may indeed be a difficult sell if the economy remains stagnant. But there is a tremendous opportunity for retailers.
You are not in the baby business with half an aisle of diapers, wipes and food. Retailers have to create an environment and product line that makes moms feel comfortable and safe–part of a club if you will. Take a look at what Safeway is doing with its Mom to Mom concept.
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I believe something like this has been seen and went the way of marginal concepts…wasn’t Mothercare a shot at this a while ago?
Having said that, I think niche Retailers ARE missing the boat in not “getting” how much consumers want to be empowered and supported. In the case of the baby business, there is SO much to know and the price of failure is SO high that sufficient motivation exists for consumers to get themselves educated and empowered to be the best parent they can be. Will they pay for that? In one way or another. They may not pay outright for such an environment…but I’d be willing to bet that making your site/store a destination based on empowerment and support would be an enormous boost to existing product sales.
This speaks directly to the need for Retailers, regardless of the niche or market being addressed, to deliver demonstrable value to their target consumers. Which requires understanding what makes those consumers tick. In the case of new or expectant mothers…well, the research is out there.
These observations are not rocket science, nor are they new. The critical component is how to pay for this value-ad as a Retailer if the consumer won’t explicitly pay for them. Look around…there ARE ways to reach these consumers that don’t actually cost all that much.
There is one retailer in the US that is also singularly focused on mom, and I’m not talking about Motherhood Maternity…how about Walmart? The Cupcake premise just happens to focus on products and services that directly court mothers. Walmart is focused on mom’s relationship to the brand and all related touch points. That’s why they’ve partnered with mommy bloggers and mobile providers and it’s a big part of the retailer’s in-store Smart Network initiative.
In store, Walmart knows that if they can make everything from Tire and Lube Express to apparel more appealing to moms, they’ve won over a highly influential segment of the population (not to mention a start with a new generation of shoppers). I do think that other retailers could learn from this…that focusing relentlessly on one power niche can make complicated customer segmentation models seem scatterbrained by comparison.
As a new mom myself, and a marketing VP, the “Sex in the City” lifestyle has definitely become a cliche among my peers. In fact, it really did BEFORE we got pregnant. The economy, the environmental situation, the values we try to instill into our children are all the exact opposite of these ladies in London. We are simply looking for a place to hang out with our kids that allows us to exchange information, support each other, and let our kids have fun. Last I checked, that didn’t cost a thing.
Connecting with moms and moms-to-be, if you are a retailer with offerings for them, is an unparalleled opportunity to be relevant and will absolutely be successful if done right.
David is right on about the Blogger Moms out there–they are an increasingly active and viable force–just look at the investment capital that has poured in to them!
Many retailers are completely missing the mark on mothers-to-be and also nursing Mom’s, one of the most dramatically rising segments today in the marketplace. Baby aisles in chain drug, supermarkets, and mass merchandisers, need to create space for destination items.
For example, if retailers will turn to the mom’s blogging sites, where nursing Moms and Moms-to-be are actively conversing, sharing, and exchanging information they will learn about items such as an at-home testing strip that nursing Moms are using to screen their breast milk. And for expectant moms, a product being discussed is an at-home gender predicting product. These are the types of new innovations and destination items that do not have to be exclusive only to specialty stores.
Bernice is writing about a brilliant concept. It may indeed be a difficult sell if the economy remains stagnant. But there is a tremendous opportunity for retailers.
You are not in the baby business with half an aisle of diapers, wipes and food. Retailers have to create an environment and product line that makes moms feel comfortable and safe–part of a club if you will. Take a look at what Safeway is doing with its Mom to Mom concept.