Mumsnet Talk

Hello,

I am student studying Fashion Marketing and for my final year project I am planning on launching a children's fashion magazine. I would just like to gather your thoughts this, and hopefully understand what parents really want.

1) What influences what you buy for your children?

2) Do you think you would like a magazine that was focused on children's middle market brands such as Next, Zara, Gap etc?

3) If a children's fashion magazine was made, what else would be of most use to you? e.g activties and days out, book reviews, receipes.

Thanks so much, PLEASE BE HONEST! say what you really feel.

Is it for children or adults to read?

For adults to read.

Hmm ok. I don't know, because I don't think I'd buy it TBH. I don't think fashion for children is that important.

Sorry.

I dislike the idea of a children's fashion magazine to be honest, although it depends on the age of the children - mine are 5 and 3. If they were older I wouldn't feel uneasy about it but I still feel the concept is odd. If children are interested in fashion don't they want to choose their own clothes? And personally I don't want my children to be fashionable until they are interested themselves. I want them to be warm enough, comfortable and reasonably clean.

I think people interested in children's fashion might buy Junior magazine (which is not my cup of tea, tbh), though it's more upmarket and expensive than your proposal. The trouble with high street fashion for kids is it doesn't change much year to year - the same old pink stuff with appliques....

Good luck to you but, to be honest, I wouldn't be buying. It gives me great pleasure to dress my dd, but not enough to buy a magazine about it.

I read Junior Magazine but find the clothes they feature expensive. I have boys but the majority of fashion spreads showing clothes for children feature girls. It would be great if there were more boys clothes featured.

What ages are you aiming at as there's a real gap in the market where teenage boys clothing is concerned. My DS1 is 16 and loves clothes (He won the award for best dressed student) but there aren't any magazines catering for his age group. I'm not suggesting a whole magazine for teenage boys because, unless it had lots of boobs in, sales would be low but a childs fashion magazine that also featured something for older children/teens would be great.

have a look at angels and urchins

I think the idea of it is pretty ghastly tbh

I have a subscription to Junior magazine. I wouldn't buy a magazine that featured the middle market brands you mentioned as I can look at them online or just goto the local shops and buy them. The appeal of Junior is that it is aspirational and full of 'pretty things'

1) What influences what you buy for your children?
Price, durability, machine washability, looks, absence of pale blue and cars.

2) Do you think you would like a magazine that was focused on children's middle market brands such as Next, Zara, Gap etc?
Not really

3) If a children's fashion magazine was made, what else would be of most use to you? e.g activties and days out, book reviews, receipes.

Days out and activities.

But to be honest, I manage to clothe DS quite successfully without a magazine. But he is only 15 months old. At this stage what I really want from kid's fashion is adjustable waists, durable knees, expandable shoes!!!!, trousers big enough for a cloth nappy and colours other than beige and pale blue. Also, I try to avoid negative slogans (Here comes troubles, Louder than a Dinosaur.....) and pictures of cars/buses/lorries/robots.

Actually, what I really want fashion-wise as a parent is easy to launder smart-casual work wear that is not black.

Oops, I didn't answer any of your questions.

1) What influences what you buy for your children?...

Whatever's instore. Most of their clothes (DS2 and DS3 I mean as DS1 tends to buy for himself now) are from Gap and Zara. If I go to buy them a new coat or jeans I'll usually end up buying a few tops for them while I'm there.

2) Do you think you would like a magazine that was focused on children's middle market brands such as Next, Zara, Gap etc?...

Yes, but I probably wouldn't buy it regularly. It would be handy if there was a birthday coming up or some other special occassion that they needed a whole new outfit for and I needed a bit of inspiration.

3) If a children's fashion magazine was made, what else would be of most use to you? e.g activties and days out, book reviews, receipes.

All of the above! Although Junior Magazine already has all of that, so if you're going to give us what we've already got then you'll have to present it differently. Everything is very perfect in Junior Magazine world. Lovely mums with their lovely children showing us around their lovely cream carpeted homes. It's all a bit smug really. I'd like a little more reality and a lower price. £4.90 is bonkers! I subscribe so don't actually pay that amount but would happily cancel that subscription if there was an alternative that offered a good monthly "What's On" guide. It's the main reason I buy Junior.

Thanks for all the messages I have had so far, this is all so helpful.

The age group was originally going to be for 2-10 year olds. But I will finalise this when I find the good demand for whichever age group.

Can I just add that I orginally wanted this magazine to help parents spend their money well mixing middle and high end brands. So it would focus mixing good quality high street brands with like an expensive but long lasting designer coat.

Those were my initial thoughts, but the more people that respond to my post the more I can understand whether this would work.

Thanks again.

But sherbet, how many parents want to buy a long lasting designer coat for a child that will grow out of it in one season?

I'm sure they're out there, but I don't know how many of them. I get investment buying for adults (when quality and longevity count) but most parents reckon it's just not worth investing in expensive children's clothing, because they'll only wear it for a few months.

Now, I think there's a gap in the market for a Mother & Baby-type magazine aimed at parents of older children, but slightly more upmarket and sophisticated (Mumsnet magazine, maybe?!), full of childcare advice plus interviews, articles, product reviews and even a page or two of fashion.

But I guess that wouldn't be very appealing to a Fashion Marketing student

There is a fabulous children's fashion magazine in France called Milk

Milk magazine is what inspired me to do this project!

Thanks again for all these responses they are all very informative

French parents are prepared to spend a lot more on their children's clothes than English parents, IMO. Have you done any market sizing/segmentation in France and UK to compare?