News article

40% of parents don't buy nursery furniture, but chooses to reuse it

A third of parents buy a new dresser, crib, and/or wardrobe. As has been the case for years, IKEA is the most visited brick-and-mortar store for nursery furniture and also the most popular brand. Except when it comes to highchairs, where Stokke tops the list. This and more are evident from the latest figures from the ongoing WIJ Monitor survey by WIJ Special Media.

Sustainable choices
All parents want the best for their baby. Sustainability is a priority, and economic motives may also play a role. A full 40% of parents in the survey furnish their nursery with furniture they received or already own from an older child.

The crib is increasingly becoming a family heirloom. Only 17% of parents buy a new one, while 51% already own one. The dresser, crib, wardrobe, playpen, and rocking chair: compared to two years ago, they’re being bought about 2 to 3% less secondhand. Most furniture isn’t being bought new more often, but rather reused more often.

Which stores are their favourites?
Only a third of parents do all their nursery purchases online. Nearly 46% shop exclusively in brick-and-mortar stores, while the number of parents combining online and in-store shopping is growing towards almost 25% (up from 17% two years ago). Ikea has been at the top of the list for in-store shoppers for years (45% now), followed by Babydump, Babypark, Prénatal, and Van Asten Babysuperstore. Online, we see almost the same stores at the top, but in a slightly different order. Babydump.nl tops the list, followed by Ikea.nl, Babypark.nl, Vanastenbabysuperstore.nl, and Bol.com.

Popular brands
The most popular brand for nursery furniture is by far Ikea (almost 39%), followed by TWF (13%), Kidsmill (almost 10%), Maxi-Cosi (8.9%), Prénatal (8.6%), and Stokke (7.5%).

What’s the budget?
Parents spend an average of € 715 on new nursery furniture, with an average budget of € 173 for second-hand items. A new high chair costs an average of € 219, whilst the average price for a second-hand high chair is € 96.

Set apart: the high chair
The high chair is kept separate from other baby furniture, specifically in the living room or kitchen. Although a high chair is only needed once a baby can sit properly, over 69% of parents buy one during pregnancy! Usually in the last trimester. After birth, most babies are 3-6 months old when they purchase a high chair (almost 14%).

About a third of parents buy a new high chair (32.6%), and 22.6% buy a used one. High chairs are becoming less popular as gifts, with less than 14% receiving a new one and 8.5% receiving a used one.

For high chairs, parents most often go to Babypark, followed by Prénatal, Babydump, Ikea, and Van Asten Babysuperstore. The share of parents buying high chairs online is now 55%. This is almost 9% more than two years ago, when 7.5% more parents bought high chairs both online and offline. Large household or more children? The top 5 online retailers for new highchairs are Prenatal.nl, followed by Bol.com, Baby-dump.nl, Babypark.nl, and Lidl.nl.

Among newly purchased highchairs, Stokke is by far the most popular brand, with nearly 51% of them. Kidsmill, Ikea, Maxi-Cosi, and Roba follow at a considerable distance (purchased by less than 10%).

About the WIJ Monitor
The WIJ Monitor is an ongoing study conducted by the data-driven media company WIJ Special Media. This study has been running since 2012 and maps the customer journey of (expectant) mothers as they purchase various baby products. WIJ Special Media has extensive knowledge of the baby market and regularly conducts various studies. For more information, please contact director Marcel Bakker at marcel.bakker@wij.nl.