Did you know that children’s products are one of the most promising niches for online retailers?
It’s true. This is largely for two main reasons:
- It’s convenient for busy parents who don’t have to leave home to make a purchase
- People are willing to spend on their kids
And kid’s brands do indeed drive some serious business. Around $1.2 trillion is spent per year on products geared toward children and tweens.
You can capitalize on this by creating a kid’s brand and online store that caters to the audience of parents, grandparents, and caregivers who want to offer the best of everything to their little ones.
Here’s what you need to know and consider beforehand.
Who Should Start a Kid’s Brand?
There’s one demographic of people who seem specially suited for starting a kid’s brand: Parents.
Those who have kids of their own make sense as kid’s brand founders because…well, they get it. They’re in tune with the target audience for this niche and these types of products because they know what parents need and want for their children. They understand the desires, expectations, and concerns of the core audience.
This was true for the founders of Cosmobaby, a children’s clothing and accessory brand:
It all started during a gathering…we noted innovative and useful products brought back by one of the mums from overseas. We lamented that we were not able to find these products locally. It became a lightbulb moment: We shouldn’t wait for others to bring these items
For others, kid’s brands are more of a passion project that starts as a labor of love and evolves into a business opportunity. Take Carol of Carol’s Creations, for example. She said:
I make clothes for my grandchildren and enjoy sewing. I thought it would be a great opportunity to start and share children’s clothing with others. I’m not for profit, I just enjoy sewing to fill in my time…you can only sew so many things for your own.
The thing to remember is this: Whether you’re interested in launching a kid’s brand to create a career for yourself, or you’re just doing it to share your passion or hobby, you’ll need to be able to relate with the buyers of kid’s products.
How to Differentiate Your Kid’s Brand
The next question then, is: How do you differentiate your kid’s brand from the rest of the competition?
Dmitry Karaush, an experienced online retailer, puts this well: “You must first analyze the market to see what’s missing for the customers who are already present in this area (and that other retailers can’t offer.)”
Consider the following when analyzing the market and looking for gaps that can make your brand special, unique, and appealing to customers:
Exclusive products
By selling
This has been Karaush baby carrier’s strategy: by creating their own custom baby slings, they can offer exclusive products only sold under their brand name.
Karaush is a brand that sells unique baby slings
Specific niche products
By niching down to a highly specific sector of the kid’s market, you can stand out from the competition (rather than trying to cater to customers of all kinds.) For example, rather than simply selling kid’s clothing, you could position your brand as one that sells
Online retailer Kiddo has taken this approach: they sell streetwear for
Kiddo sells streetwear for kids
Problem-solving products
By discovering and addressing pain points the buyers within this niche are facing, your kid’s products can be positioned as valuable,
That’s what kid’s brand Hungry Little Monkeys did: they created reusable,
This store sells reusable
Now that we have an idea of how to stand out within the kid’s brand marketplace, let’s look at the laws and regulations to consider and be in compliance with when you’re ready to launch.
Laws and Regulations to Know
Before introducing your new kid’s brand and its products to the market, be sure you’re in compliance with the laws and regulations related to this product niche.
- Within the US, children’s products are subject to a set of federal safety rules, called the Children’s Product Safety Rules (CPSR). These pertain to children’s products aimed at children 12 years of age or younger. If your brand is selling toys or durable infant or toddler products, you will need to be in compliance and have your products tested before putting them on the market.
- Manufacturers and importers of children’s products in the US must have a Children’s Product Certificate to certify that their products comply with all safety rules.
- Within the EU, food products aimed at children will need to follow specific rules for nutritional composition, as determined by Commision Directive 2006/141/EC.
Depending on where you live, there may also be state and/or local regulations associated with children’s products, so be sure to check with state and local government offices to see if additional permits or certifications are required.
Best Practices for Kid’s Brands
Last, but not least, let’s go over a few of the best practices that you should keep in mind to make your kid’s brand a success.
- Service. You can have the best website, design, and prices in the market, but if your service is lacking, customers won’t support your brand. Especially for urgent goods (think food, diapers, etc.) you need to ensure reliable,
on-time delivery and excellent customer support. Customers are sensitive about products for their kids, so deliveringtop-tier service to each and every customer is a must. - Convenience. Anyone caring for a child is constantly busy, so convenience is key. Offer a variety of delivery options (including
pick-up , if that’s helpful) so that you can accommodate your buyers’ hectic schedules. - Returns. Returns are a
hassle–and one more thing to add on a busy parent’sto-do list. Cut down on returns by including detailed photos and product descriptions, and make sure you can quickly answer questions via email or a call center. - Be emotionally involved. It’s important to be emotionally involved in your kid’s brand because your buyers will be, too. When customers buy, they’re buying with a child in mind, so always listen to concerns, help when you can, and show that you’re emotionally invested in every single sale.
If you can follow these best practices, you’ll be more likely to see success and repeat sales from loyal brand supporters.
