TEN years ago, expectant moms had to make do with sailor-collared maternity tops, jeans of their husbands (as they would fit a growing belly) and blah inch-high shoes to go out. If one had a little baby, the mom would have to bring along bottles of milk (whether formula or breast milk expressed at home) since it would be such a hassle to do breast-feeding outside the home. The huge stroller would have to be brought along, since it would be too tiring to carry the baby all the time.
But now there’s a whole lot of fashionable maternity clothes out there. Breast-feeding in public is a cinch with nursing bibs that allow babies to nurse discreetly. There’s even a sling moms can wear so they can carry their babies well for long periods of time.
And the products for moms and infants have more than doubled over recent years: belly belts (maternity pants extenders), nappy clutches (fashionable diaper bags), breast milk trays (for freezing breast milk), massage oil for babies, parenting magazines, etc.
It’s the age of hip parenting. Gen-Xers in their 30s and 40s are very much different from their own parents. They want to be more hands-on in raising their kids but at the same time retain their individuality. And they want only the best for their kids.
Just ask young moms Denise Gonzales and Monica Eleazar of Indigo Baby. “We saw there was a need for young moms like us who wanted to embrace parenthood without sacrificing style, and, more importantly, our identities,” they say.
Denise and Monica came up with the nappy clutch, a chic diaper bag that can be tucked into a handbag or worn on the wrist. The designs are eye-catching for the fashionista mom: zebra, camouflage, pucci, and Indigo Baby’s trademark combination. It can even be used as a real clutch bag, sans the diaper.
They also sell the reversible nursing bib which makes a cool cover for mom and baby when breast-feeding in public. The bib can match one’s clothes.
An organic bath and body line completes Indigo Baby’s product line.
Jen CC Tan of Next 9 is a firm believer in attachment parenting, which advocates strengthening the bond between parent and child. When her sons were still babies, she used the baby sling (a product she got from abroad) which enabled her to “wear” her baby while moving about. “I had such a great experience wearing my baby. I wanted to share the feeling. Also I felt it was an important attachment parenting tool.”
Jen and her partner felt that they can improve on the baby sling and make it suit the Philippine market by using lighter fabrics. They came out with the product, and developed some more, such as colorful cloth diapers and stylish maternity wear.
When Janice Villanueva was breast-feeding her eldest, Coby, 11 years ago, she lamented the lack of breast-feeding blouses in the market. “There were a couple of brands of nursingwear available abroad then but it was quite expensive to order online or bring the brands in,” she says. That’s why Janice and her partner designed and produced their own line, Mommy Matters, available in department stores and also by delivery service to new moms who can’t go out yet.
From nursingwear, Mommy Matters now carries other products designed to make lives easier for moms: the belly belt, diaper bag converters, nursing covers and breast milk trays. Seeing that moms need information about breast-feeding and parenting too, Mommy Matters is now also into events about these. Janice also publishes Mommy Pages, a free directory for moms for all things parenting-related.
Market response, according to Janice, Jen, Denise and Monica, have been really good. But there’s room for more. “While the market we are targeting is a very niche one, moms are a passionate lot, so they love having many options for every single step, stage, task, activity of parenting. The more products and services to choose from, as long as it can help, enhance or compliment her parenting, the better,” says Janice.
The McCann Intergenerational Study released last year — a comprehensive survey which tracked 2,000 urban Filipinos aged 12 to 60 — revealed that one of the mindsets of the Filipino is his being relationship-centered. Relationships, particularly with family, are top priority. It’s no wonder, then, that parenting products designed to strengthen the bond between parent and child have become a hit in the country.
July 9th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
It’s amazing how new products for moms and babies keep coming up!
July 8th, 2008 at 9:24 am
When my son was born, I had at least 4 carrier bags for different weather, and outing. This is very informative.