What a horrendous thought!! But apart from each of us personally having to send a load of cards and buy presents for friends and family, what does it mean?

No, I’m not about to enter into a long discussion as to the meaning of Christmas (well not here anyway!) but the holiday does affect our businesses.

Firstly, pregnant women have traditionally not shopped for baby goods in December. Well who can blame them? It’s bad enough having to push your way through the crowds without having a big bump to hinder you, and bad enough to have to do all the Christmas shopping without thinking about getting things for baby.

New Year Resolutions are yet another tradition, but one that can be very positive. Now is the time to start thinking about changes. If things are a bit quiet, all the better to start planning!

January is the time of the Sales – and it is worth remembering what the initial driving force of the Sale was – the time to get rid of all those products which are just not selling.

This January also sees the start of a new decade – a traditional time for looking forward. So what changes should we be looking at? What do we want to happen in the next decade? More internet shopping? Fewer independents? Or a more diverse range of outlets for baby products?

Let me know of any thoughts you have!

- Cathy Bryan

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Small, practical and attractively packed, the Twist travel spoon is an ideal impulse buy item from a striking cashdesk display.

Ideal for travelling, Twist is small and handy. Kept in a neat case which protects from dirt and germs, Twist unfolds in a jiffy ready for baby’s meal, and back in the case on the way home.

The fun, ergonomic design, adjustable to two lengths, makes Twist easy to use by parent or a self-feeder and its soft rounded spoon will be gentle on baby’s delicate gums.

Dishwasher safe and available in five trendy colours, Twist retails at £2.99

Twist is part of the new Concord product line – Driving, Moving, Living.

For more information visit the Concord website www.concord.de

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The striking Hollie Sleigh bed from BabyStyle starts life as a cot bed before transforming to a junior bed and then a sofa bed.

The Hollie will become a child’s favourite nursery item as it transforms as they grow. As a junior bed it has a safety side rail and then once it is used as a sofa bed, it gives them a place to sit and read and room for friends to stay over.

An optional drawer provides storage space.

More information is available from BabyStyle UK Ltd who can be contacted on 01509 816444 or by email at info@babystyle.co.uk

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TV presenter, Tess Daly and health expert, Miriam Stoppard will be joining the fantastic line up at next February’s The Baby Show, taking place at London’s ExCeL.

Former model and mother of two, Tess Daly will be at The Show on Friday the 19th of February to promote her new book entitled The Baby Diaries, which tell of her own experience of pregnancy. She’ll be at The Show signing books and giving her own tips on how she coped through the various stages of pregnancy.

Visitors to The Baby Show on the Friday will also hear from well loved health writer and broadcaster Miriam Stoppard, who will be passing on her gems of wisdom including advice on how to help parents get their little ones off to a good night’s rest.

Miriam Stoppard, has been at the forefront of health information since she began her writing and broadcasting career in the early 1970s. Since that time she has become well-known to millions all over the world as a leading authority on parenting, child care, women’s health, and many other crucial health issues. Miriam’s letters of advice can be read every day in The Daily Mirror, as well as in her regular health page in Tesco Magazine and Top Sante.

With further details of those appearing still to be announced, The Baby Shows 2010 are set to provide inspiration, advice and support for all new parents and parents-to-be.

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PlayMais is a revolutionary craft toy using 100% natural ingredients. Sweetcorn and plant dyes are made into colourful building bricks, which using just a dab of water, stick to each other. An ideal crafting toy for young artists!

Not only are the PlayMais bricks fully biodegradable and eco-friendly, all of the packaging and box contents are too – even the cutting tool in each pack is made from the cornstarch!

PlayMais has already won awards in its native country Germany, and is taking the UK market by storm, currently holding accolades from the NATLL Good Toy Awards, the ToyTalk Awards and Bizzie Baby Awards.

Retailers love the eco-ethos that PlayMais brings. Plus they’ve joined in the fun, as PlayMais have provided demonstration days across the UK, as part of a brand awareness campaign, which will continue into the New Year. Stores who have taken part have reported a significant increase in sales once children have played with the product.

Andrew Moulsher, Managing Director of PlayMais supplier, Top Banana Toys commented, “PlayMais is an exciting new product for the UK market. We’ve organised some major PR projects this year to build awareness in the UK market, including over 300 schools receiving a free Megabox to use in class, plus the retailer demonstration days, which, as well as providing some great in store theatre, have significantly increased sales.”

With a pack to suit everyone, PlayMais is available in a variety of sizes and themes. Generic boxes come in sizes M to XL, whilst the themed packs include Animal Farm, Pirates, Circus, African Jungle, Fantasy House, Castle and Sea World. What’s more, there are two new Disney additions to complete the collection – Disney Princess and My Friends Tigger and Pooh!

To find out more call 01371 873141 or email sales@topbananatoys.co.uk

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Becothings, which makes a Biodegradable Beco-Potty for toddlers amongst its growing range of products, has been crowned Winner of the 2009 HSBC Start-Up Stars Green Awards.

The awards are the UK’s premier showcase for the most promising start-up businesses and the inspirational entrepreneurs behind them. Toby Massey, 26, and George Bramble, 27, founders of Becothings, beat off stiff competition to walk away with a cheque for £10,000, courtesy of HSBC.

Stars from the business world, including Duncan Bannatyne from BBC TV’s Dragon’s Den, watched as they were presented with their award at a black-tie gala dinner held at London’s InterContinental Hotel.

The two pals realised that environmental sustainability was no longer just a hippy interest and that eco-friendly products were often 30% more expensive than the standard. With this in mind, Toby spotted a gap in the market for everyday eco-friendly products that didn’t cost the earth.

Launched in May 2007, Becothings designs, develops and manufactures fun, practical and useful eco-friendly products ranging from the Becopotty – an eco-friendly potty that can be composted when the child finishes potty training; to the BecoBowl – an eco-friendly pet bowl, while dishwasher safe, is still sustainable made and biodegradable when finished with. They have already been presented with Best New Pet Product of the Year at Glee 2009 and recently scooped Silver at the coveted Mother & Baby awards.

Director, Business Relations, The Carbon Trust, Andy Togher, presented Becothings with their award saying: “This year’s Start-Up Stars Awards show an increasing number of Britain’s small new businesses taking to heart the issues of climate change and placing them at the core of their marketing objectives. This is not only good for the planet, but also for profits as more and more informed consumers seek out products and services with green credentials. We wish Becothings every possible success for the future.”

Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for Business, who also attended the Awards said, “Becothings is an outstanding example and hopefully its success will inspire other young businesses to ask themselves what else they can do to preserve our environment and protect our future.”

More information on Becothings can be found by visiting www.becothings.com

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With winter now firmly set in, ensuring that babies stay covered and warm at night is a primary concern for parents, who will welcome the range of natural SleepSacs from PurFlo.

Created as a direct result of clinical research into baby sleep patterns and using the most advanced fabric technologies, the Purflo SleepSacs unique combination of features make them very different from the many sleeping bags available today.

PurFlo SleepSacs have a silky, soft 100% bamboo fabric lining that is naturally anti-bacterial and absorbs 60% more moisture than cotton. This combined with a high-tech Amicor Pure filling to prevent the build of up of nasty bacteria, fungi and house dust mites, make the SleepSacs ideal for babies prone to asthma and eczema.

Other great features of the PurFlo SleepSac are a unique zip wide open front for easy night nappy changes with a minimum disturbance – ensuring mum and dad can also get back to sleep quickly. The soft chin guard prevents rubbing, the sleeves are detachable for additional temperature control and smaller sizes also incorporate scratch mittens.

PurFlo SleepSacs used in conjunction with the Purflo patented fully breathable, fully washable mattress ensure that parents are providing their baby with the cleanest, safest sleep environment possible.

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Parentline Plus, the national parenting organisation, launched its newly designed website www.parentlineplus.org.uk on November 30th 2009.

Built by Tribal, the new look website will simplify the accessibility of Parentline Plus' broad range of online services currently available to meet the growing demands of modern parenting.

The website will incorporate a greater level of parent interactivity with a particular emphasis on blogs, comments, videos, ratings and numerous forums. Additional support will soon be available on the site via multimedia channels including podcasts and live chat.

For parenting professionals and practitioners, the site contains links to information and training modules to offer approaches to parenting and the possible solutions that can be implemented.

Nikola Mann, Parentline Plus New Media Manager said, "The website will be an invaluable tool for parents. The various functions will empower and entertain parents whilst informing professionals working with families and will enable Parentline Plus to pick up on key issues that are important to families and ultimately involve and engage with parents."

The website will be a major resource in bridging the gap that can exist between parents, professionals, families and children.

Check out the site at www.parentlineplus.org.uk

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A sudden medical emergency involving a child can happen absolutely anywhere. In the street, at home, even abroad. Indicare is a compact, water and scratch resistant booklet giving parents step by step instructions on what to do in an emergency.

Most parents don’t know how to react if a child suffers a fit or convulsion, starts choking, or swallows a poisonous substance. Many are ready to administer basic first aid but may be less confident when it comes to an emergency situation.

Instructions and images are clear and concise, so parents with little or no knowledge of emergency first-aid can familiarise and be supported by this invaluable resource. The portable guides include those for Infant & Child Emergency First Aid, First Aid, When to Call the Doctor and also one entitled I Have Allergies.

Indicare has been specifically designed to be completely accessible and comes with a sturdy clasp that can be effortlessly attached to absolutely anything; bags, keys, zips, prams and baby monitors. So wherever the child goes, Indicare can go to!

Indicare is the brain-child of Sarah Tague who herself experienced an emergency situation with her own child. She knows first-hand that whilst most parents have basic first-aid kits at home they lack the confidence to know what to do in the event of a real emergency. We all understand how important it is to act quickly in an emergency, yet how many of us actually could?

‘Whether it's an accident such as a serious cut or burn, or the sudden onset of choking, broken bones, burns, asthma or an allergy attack, taking the right action in the all-important first few minutes can really be a life and death situation’, says Sarah. ‘For instance, just by knowing how to keep an airway open can save your child’s life’.

Indicare is all about giving parents and carers the confidence to know what to do in a really stressful situation.

With an RRP of only £2.99 parents can afford to buy more for other family members, carers or childminders.

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Coveted in the US and around the world by a long list of film, music, sport and fashion celebrities, Ed Hardy is the fashion lifestyle label taking the world by storm and from this week Londoner arbiters of style can join the entourage!

The Ed Hardy label is already a cultural phenomenon abroad, adorning the likes of David Beckham, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Peter Andre, Paris Hilton, and Heidi Klum. To co-incide with the launch, Petite Star is delighted to announce the arrival of the hotly-awaited new range of Ed Hardy Baby products in the UK with London’s uber cool Westfield shopping centre seeing the opening of first UK Ed Hardy store this week.

Five iconic designs – Dedicated to the one I Love, Tiger, Live Love Life, Koi and King Dog are available on a range of too cool for school baby bottles, bibs and pacifiers, plus there’s a gorgeous pacifier clip too.

All the products are beautifully designed and manufactured in Europe, the bottles are Bisphenol-A free and both the Ed Hardy bottles and pacifiers come with silicon teats. The coolest bibs on the planet are 100% cotton and free from plastisol.

The bottles, bibs and pacifiers retail at £9.99, and the pacifier clip at £6.95.

For stockists or more information go to www.petitestar.com or call 01923 663 344

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Created by a doting Dad who was concerned when his son took regular falls while learning to walk, the Oopsie is a functional but easy to wear headguard designed to protect delicate heads from occasional bumps.

The Oopsie has a non-toxic EVA foam filling that will absorb shock and cushion impact. Designed to deliberately not have a frustrating and irritating chin strap, the Oopsie is easy to put on and simple to fasten using the Velcro attached to the two pieces and research has proved that toddlers are happy to wear the comfortable and lightweight headguard.

Offering protection to the forehead, temples and skull soft spots the Oopsie has a polyester and cotton cover and can be hand or gentle machine washed.

More information is available from Baby Bumper who can be found at www.theoopsie.co.uk or call 01373 301220

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It's the season of giving – so that's why we're giving our trade customers a massive 10% discount on all orders made before Christmas on Bamboo Baby products.

As the weather gets ever chillier, we think our cable knits will be just the thing for babies and children to cosy up in. But we've plenty more to offer for the colder months, including cuddly bamboo blankets in fun stripes, knitted cardigans for boys bound to brighten up the most dull wintry day.

And remember we have a section on our website dedicated to wholesale orders, so if you need to stock up for that last-minute Christmas rush, we can get your order dispatched immediately.

And wholesale customers can also get sneak previews of our upcoming collections.

Visit http://www.organic-babyclothing.co.uk/wholesale_baby_clothes.html today

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Privately owned long-established and highly respected toy manufacturer/distributor based in central England seeks a sales manager to manage sales representatives and agents and to handle larger accounts.

Experience of selling to independent toy retailers and to gift shops would be advantageous, but more important is an energetic commitment to building the business in a professional and progressive way.

For further details please contact our recruitment agency Gameplan Europe Ltd. Tel: 01442 870100 or email: margit@gameplaneurope.com

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No matter what the size of a business, large or small, it is those with a clearly thought through and easily understood strategy that tend to survive even in the most difficult times.

In my experience strategy is one of the most over-used terms in business but one of the least understood.

For me having a strategy for a business is about working within a set of parameters which are designed to ensure long term success. This can sometimes mean turning away seemingly ‘attractive’ short-term opportunities.

So if you determine that a key element of long term success for your business is to develop a strong brand then the decision to turn away private label opportunities becomes a simple one. Brand share is a key driver of profitability and private label can be in conflict with that.

This may displease some buyers but if the brand is strong and supported by products that deliver more than the competition then it’s the right thing to do.

Of course it’s important to review the business regularly to understand if the key objectives are being met. If a strategy is found not to be working then it may need to be revised, but the very fact that you have one in place can prevent costly knee-jerk reactions and aid objective decision making.

Peter Archer

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As part of continued growth at the company, Angela Douglas has joined John Crane Ltd this month. Angela joins the sales team and will work solely on the company’s latest addition to its portfolio, The Toy Workshop Collection.

She will be the point of contact for advice on or placing orders for the personalised letters. Angela is an experienced telesales executive and has previously been self-employed offering bespoke telemarketing campaigns for a variety of clients in various sectors of the market.

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SnoozeShade™ – the UK’s first universal fit blackout blind for prams and pushchairs – has been given a boost prior to launch in February 2010 with permission from Prima Baby magazine to use the ‘Prima Baby Loves’ logo on it packaging.

SnoozeShade was launched at the BPA Show in October and has secured a wide range of retailers prior to launch including Jo Jo Maman Bebe.

SnoozeShade is a secure alternative to the common sight of blankets, pegged muslins and coats draped over babies in prams to keep them asleep when they have nodded off.

SnoozeShade is a year-round pram accessory with SPF40 that universally fits most popular 3-and 4-wheel prams and pushchairs with hoods. It can also be used on rear-facing car seats with hoods. It is the perfect travel and ‘out and about’ product. It is made from layers of breathable mesh fabric and folds neatly into a small bag making it compact and highly portable, fitting neatly into a nappy bag or hanging of pram handles or popping into the pushchair basket. It has been tested to and complies with the latest European safety standards.

SnoozeShade’s creator Cara Sayer said, “We are in the very lucky, and somewhat unusual, position of being a unique and new product in the baby marketplace. SnoozeShade has been received well by retailers and media alike and we are delighted that Prima Baby has such confidence in the appeal and quality of SnoozeShade. Every day, we receive new approaches from retailers and we hope that the media coverage we have secured will result in great sales for everyone involved.”

‘We love mum-friendly ideas on Prima Baby – and SnoozeShade fits that brief perfectly. Light, neat, simple to use and effective, it’s the sleeping-on-the-go solution mums and babies have been waiting for!’ said Alison Alexander, Consumer Editor, Prima Baby & Pregnancy and www.babyexpert.com

For more information, contact Cara Sayer on 020 7183 6459, email info@snoozeshade.com or visit www.snoozeshade.com

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Once again it is all go here at as Clear as PR! We are saying goodbye to Debra Clare who have been with us for the last year but on the positive side they are being replaced by the totally fabulous The Wean Machine.

We are so excited to be working with this innovative new company – their product is nothing short of a revolution for the baby feeding category. They have already bagged themselves a run of awards and stockists right across the world. Perfect timing for us to work our PR magic we think!

"Jackson Beazeley and The Wean Machine are delighted to be working with as Clear as. We believe that Sian's knowledge and passion will build upon our fresh and enthusiastic approach to establishing The Wean Machine as a major brand," says Tilly Beazeley.

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