Key Post: Baby stuff - nappies and farley's

We had our first baby over 3 months ago. I feel we are spending a small fortune on nappies, baby wipes, bottles, cotton wool, lotions, creams etc etc etc.

Where is the cheapest place to get all this stuff ? Can we buy it in bulk somewhere ? I am not looking for sub-standard stuff either, only the best will do (e.g. pampers only).

would suggest ...

... a trip to NI nappies are significantly cheaper ... 9.99 stg for a box of pampers rather than 26 euros here, have you tried ALDI's nappies wipes etc ... excellent quality and value.

Re: would suggest ...

Have you considered an alternative eco-friendly approach such as that offered by Cotton Bottoms.

For good quality children's stuff, I've found Blooming Marvellous live up to their name, but delivery charges to ROI are high.

Re: would suggest ...

I'll 2nd Henny Penny on Aldi nappies and wipes. We saved a small fortune. You tend to have to plan a trip but can stock up for about 3 months. Not sure that they do nappies for small babies but I think Lidl do. I'm going back about a year so they may do them now. The Aldi wipes are, in my opinion, the best around. I have noticed that Huggies etc. have started doing offers on wipes since Aldi came into town. They must be losing a huge chunk of business.

Re: would suggest ...

Sorry Teabag - just noticed you said Pampers only. But I will say there was nothing inferior about the Aldi stuff we used. Quite the opposite I thought!

only the best will do (e.g. pampers only).

Click to expand...

Get over it Teabag. The nappies, wipes etc . . in Aldi/Lidl are as good as if not better than any of the branded stuff. You could save a small fortune.

Typo

nappies

only the best will do (e.g. pampers only).

If you suffer from only buying branded goods then expect to pay through the nose.

We use Aldi nappies/ wipes by the ton and have not had a single problem.

nappies

I will give Aldi and Lidl a try on the nappy/wipe front.

In relation to Pampers, my child does not seem comfortable in any other brand. Serious nappy rash for Huggies and the Tesco brand but perfect in Pampers.

I think we all 'suffer' from buying branded goods and I often find they are superior in many ways.

Teabag,

Would have to agree with you on the pampers front. Its quite a while since mine were in nappies but I always found the cheaper brands leaked which usually led to more washing on clothes and bedclothes and therefore wrote off the saving.

Have to say our lad was never dry all night in anything but Pampers, and God I wanted a cheaper option!!

wipes

Dunnes in the square seem to have a permanent offer of 2 bags of wipes for the price of one. At around 4.50 a go, that will add up quite quickly. AND I think the price of even one is cheaper then tescos, so youre getting better then double value.

I would also say advise pricing a nappy individually to get the best value pack. ie, Divide the amount of nappies in the box by the price to get the unit price, Ive been surprised at times to find a bigger box to be less value.

If you're price concious and on the net, go to the online stores (dunnes,tescos,superquinn etc.) for all the maojr outlets and price before you shop.

Re: Baby stuff

Lidl are knocking 40% off their packs of nappies today. Normal price under a tenner, discounted price under €6. Not sure if this is a new standard price or just one of their special offers. Their flyer headlined this offer "get your nappies at Lidl, Eddie" but nobody that I mentioned it to got the joke.

Anybody know why specific brands of infant forumla (e.g. SMA Gold, Aptimel, Cow and Gate etc.) seem to cost exactly the same price in all stores and why Farley's First Milk is about €2 cheaper than other brands of newborn formula (at least in Boots - c. €8+ instead of €10+ for a 900g tin)?

Re: Baby stuff

I don't know why those formula foods are priced similarly across stores. however I can vouch for the quality of the Lidl nappies, we've found them to be off good quality and over time the reduced price does add up. Lidl did a special on these nappies earlier this year also.

Re: Baby stuff

Hopefully you can't personally vouch for them but I think I know what you mean. I guess it's a temporary offer rather than a new standard price so given that they've run a similar discount before?

Just noticed this thread which might also be if interest - I've cross linked the two.

Re: Baby stuff

The reason most baby formula is the same prioce is that shops are not allowed to offer special offers on baby formula that competes with breast feeding, ie under 6 months formula. You cannot get reward points for it etc, so shops cannot have it on special offer. Don't know why Farley's milk is cheaper.
On nappies, I found Aldi nappies worked best for my two darlings.Must admit I stuck to pampers until Daughter number two came along and with two in nappies needed a cheaper alternative.

Re: Baby stuff

I thought that the only price control on baby formula was the below cost selling one of the Groceries Order but that it could be sold at any price otherwise. I also noticed that Boots have some special offers (e.g. two for the price of one) on certain infant formula products so I'm not sure that your analysis is correct otherwise Boots would seem to be in breach of the relevant rules. However if you can point to the relevant rules/legislation then I'd be very interested. Seems odd that different brands can be different prices (e.g. Farley's is the cheapest that I've seen while Aptimel (?) is the dearest) but the price for a specific brand and type seems to be constant across all outlets. I'm not sure how lower prices can compete with breast milk when the latter is free. While many people might see a public policy promoting breastfeeding as laudable some would also argue that this decision should left up to the individuals involved and that market interference/price controls may not be the appropriate way to implement it. However, that's another discussion altogether I suppose...

Re: Baby stuff

What BANHAM said is true Clubman. If you check the Boots offer you will see it only applies to formula for 6months plus (stage 2,step up etc...) The price of formula milk for infants under 6 months is the same price per brand in EVERY shop so getting it from tesco,supervalu or the corner shop makes no difference to the price. Usually you will see that the 6months old formula is dearer than the step-up one for this reason as the special offers only come once the baby is on the second stage milk.
The below should be some help.....

Page 27 - if you don't want to read it all!!!
[broken link removed]

Re: Baby stuff

Just while you touch on the breast feeding topic, I suppose it may appear "free" but I think any breastfeeding mother would also confirm that they would tend to eat more and be more particular about their diet, eat a lot more fresh fruit and veg. etc- what goes out must go in! I think that some of the statutory controls regarding the promotion and marketing of formula feeds have a history which dates back to the activities of formula milk manufacturers in underdeveloped economies. In the past the multinational manufacturers promoted their product at discounted prices in these economies advocating it's use over breastfeeding, this despite the fact that clean, potable water to make up the formula was often not readily available. The WHO highlighted this issue which is why I understand the practice of promting the formula in this way is prohibited.

Re: Baby stuff

[broken link removed]

[broken link removed]

See also the above.

Re: Baby stuff

fobs said:

What BANHAM said is true Clubman. If you check the Boots offer you will see it only applies to formula for 6months plus (stage 2,step up etc...) The price of formula milk for infants under 6 months is the same price per brand in EVERY shop so getting it from tesco,supervalu or the corner shop makes no difference to the price. Usually you will see that the 6months old formula is dearer than the step-up one for this reason as the special offers only come once the baby is on the second stage milk.
The below should be some help.....

Page 27 - if you don't want to read it all!!!
[broken link removed]

Click to expand...

You're correct. The offers that I saw were on feeds for babies 6 months or older. Thanks to you both for the info and clarification (in particular the FSAI link which is very useful). Seems odd though that one manufacturer (Farleys) can seemingly pitch their product at a lower price than the others...