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.

Stay at home Dad - Part 2

Ahhh.... the beauty of naivety! There was me thinking I'd have the time/energy/presence of mind to actually create a post on a daily basis with a new baby in the home and while being full time dad to the other two children.

I'm sure some people are able to... but for me it was such a culture shock that even lifting my hand to prod the TV control was an achievement after 7pm.

I did take a few notes though (on the back of breast pad boxes/cereal packets and the slightly torn credit card bill that our two year old had chewed on)... so here's summary.

Birthing day (Friday 26th January). 10 minute contractions throughout the day on the 25th... which we were so grateful for... Helen was due to be induced at 9pm on the 25th - we were so glad that it started naturally. My father-in-law had come over to baby sit so we sat around playing monopoly till the early hours and then all managed to get a few hours kip.

Helen woke at 4am with the contractions a little more purposeful... drove to hospital for about 5:00 (after a stop of at 24-hour tesco for 'supplies' - mostly chocolate!). We had the first two at home - but due to a blood test that warned of possible anaemia we had to do hospital birth.

We were checked into a beautiful, calm delivery room and left in peace. Helen had been to hypno-birthing sessions with her friend Becky (another first for us) and as the contractions started getting stronger it was impressive to see the way that Helen would calmly close her eyes and 'go into a zone' while the contraction past).



By complete coincidence we were in a room that had a birthing pool and as things progressed Helen asked if the pool could be filled up. The combination of the warm supportive water and
the relaxation from the hypno-birthing techniques meant the whole experience was very calm, controlled and a positive experience (and no other pain relief was needed). Jay Harry Wilkins was born weighing 9lbs and came home the same day.

The picture is of Jay just a few minutes after he and Helen got out of the birthing pool.

Saturday and Sunday are a bit of a blur... we stayed at home Saturday and just relaxed - older two kids got to watch lots of TV and eat what they liked. I did manage to get to church with the Lucy & Timothy on Sunday - which gave Helen some peace and quiet at home for a few hours.

Then on Monday morning my week had started...