It’s been said that infants are the most powerful people in the world. Anyone who has ever been a parent can attest to this firsthand. So it’s not hard to imagine that kids are on equal footing with adults when it comes to purchasing decisions. According to Mintel, families with children under 18 have $3.8 trillion in buying power. It’s big business.
So how are brands piquing interest? This goes far beyond toys, games, and what we typically think of as kid retail. Brands that are thinking ahead are getting in on the action and shifting their interest to parents AND their children. Catering to both, together, but in different means of engagement. There is a wide range of opportunity for retailers to gain access to the market share. There’s plenty to go around after all.
“Gen Z is already on track to become the largest generation of consumers by the year 2020, and they account for $29 to $143 billion in direct spending.” – Forbes
Rent The Runway
We’ve been big fans of e-commerce retailer Rent The Runway’s approach to connecting with customers. Making high fashion accessible to the masses and dipping their well-polished toes into brick-and-mortar retail. Creating a community of fashion-forward fans and winning with their unique perspective that the Renting Economy is where it’s at. “Buy Less. Wear More.” Transitioning into the kid market is a perfect expansion for the brand, allowing trendy, fashion-forward moms to access designer clothing for their children.
“With this launch, you’ll never have to worry about a stain or a spill because Rent the Runway handles everything.” Rent the Runway CEO, Jennifer Hyman
The desire is there for high-end children’s fashion, but: 1) kids are messy and 2) it’s usually not worth it to pay steep prices when they will grow out of it in a few short months. Enter Rent the Runway. Now part of their Unlimited and Reserve subscription services, parents can have their children fashioned in the latest and greatest threads. Instagram approved.
Rockets Of Awesome
With a name like that, how can it not be the greatest brand ever created? In 2016, Rockets of Awesome launched as a subscription box service catering to kids fashion. But unlike typical children’s clothes, Rockets of Awesome was committed to high-quality merchandise and invested in designing and manufacturing their pieces.
With a wide range of products and styles, it’s appealing to busy parents who don’t have the time to shop in multiple stores. It is also fun for kids to get their own mail and have control over selecting items online that match their style. This digital native, now backed by Foot Locker, will be opening their first brick-and-mortar location just in time for back to school.
DSW
In 2016, DSW jumped feet first into the kid shoe game and hasn’t looked back. DSW learned that when families had children they were leaving the brand completely. Without the offering of a “one-stop-shop”, they were alienating their once loved customer. “Once families have children, the adult shoe market share is cut in half,” said CEO, Roger Rawlins. And they wanted them back. This past year, they took a bigger leap with a new prototype that includes a designated kid zone.
Parents may hold the purse strings, but more and more kids are showing that their opinion matters. Being affluent in all things online and technology, they are often going to parents with their fully researched recommendations.
Curious what makes a kid-focused retail experience successful and unique?
Check our report, Can Retail Come Out And Play?