Wilkinet Trade Research: Do shoppers want 'Private Consultations'

Originally Published: 15 April, 2007 in 'Nursery Industry Magazine' - for more information visit: http://www.nursery-industry.co.uk/news/search.php?_FB%5Bq%5D=wilkinet

Imagine for a moment you are in front of a crowd of 300 people. Many of them are pregnant; some already have babies and toddlers. There are a few new Dads in there too. All of them are your potential customers. As your audience settles down you hold a megaphone to your mouth and shout…

"So… I was thinking of stocking up on ten of the new Widget 3000s from Widgets’R’Us… what do you think of it? Would you buy it?"

After a few murmurs from the crowd and a general lack of interest you quickly cross it off your list and move on.

When I took a sideways step 12 months ago from the market research industry to take the reigns of Wilkinet (we manufacture and wholesale the Wilkinet baby carrier and Wilkinet clothing range) the first thing on my to do list was to get to know my customers better. The Wilkinet Survey was born.

Starting today the Wilkinet Survey is available to the nursery trade. Every month over 500 people complete our surveys on topics ranging from what their favourite brand or colour of pushchair is (it’s a black Mamas & Papas travel system by the way) through to whether a free cup of tea would make them more likely to shop at their local independent nursery retailer (it wouldn’t… but offering a home delivery option gets a big thumbs up).

The Monthly Quick Question: The Private Consultation

This month’s hot topic is the private consultation… a parent gets one-toone advice about baby products and then walks away with a shopping list (or in some cases the consultant will buy, deliver and build it all for them). The service is getting a lot of press attention and several people in the trade have asked me whether this is an area the independent retailer could get into (with some consultants charging up to £2,500 a go it could be a lucrative sideline). The short answer to paid consultations from nursery shops in most cases is no... but don’t rule it out entirely.
With half the respondents saying they’d be interested if it were a free service this could be a good opportunity to package and market the expert advice and customer service you give to your customers already. The free service could be a simple ten-minute chat and a printed list of recommendations and price bands. It’s still the product sales you would be making your profit on – but if it increases footfall then it’s worth considering.

There is also a smaller group of people who would be willing to pay for your time – or at least pay and then redeem on purchases. We asked how much to charge and most people thought £20 to £50 would be reasonable.

Gideon Wilkins is a qualified member of the Market Research Society. He runs Wilkinet Ltd – a manufacturer and wholesaler of the Wilkinet baby carrier, baby carrier rain cover and the Wilkinet clothing range.