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Original poster

Prams as a status symbol/pram snobbery

182 replies

Mamamooligans · 08/08/2019 17:58

So today I was looking at prams and overheard a woman telling who I assume was her mother 'we're only looking at the icandys and bugaboos, I wouldn't be caught dead with anything else.'

Is this a common attitude? To be honest I don't really like the look of most icandys and bugaboos, I think the bucket seats look uncomfy. I don't get why anyone would rule out other brands, surely you want whats comfiest for baby and suits your lifestyle best? Not just based on brand or cost?

Do people choose prams as a status symbol? Do you judge people based on what pram they have?

OP posts:

Evilmorty · 08/08/2019 23:46

SOmething about the babyzen reminds me of this cat. Don’t like it.

SailorJerry13 · 08/08/2019 23:54

www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2017-04-13/a-young-mother-is-fighting-against-pram-snobbery/

OP you aren’t the only one !

kidsmakesomuchwashing · 09/08/2019 00:01

My deciding factor was purely - biggest basket, best guarentee, least product recalls. That's what I bought!

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WhyBirdStop · 09/08/2019 00:40

I was led by the fact I had a car with a tiny boot, which got written off when DS was three weeks old and was replaced by what DB calls my boring mum car. A colleague has a bugaboo (not sure which but not a bee) it's huge and so heavy.

Skiphopnicknok · 09/08/2019 06:12

@JessePinkmanYo - well said. Yes, I hate comments like that. The only important purchase for a baby is the car seat for safety - the rest is all about just loving them, not shiny things. So sorry you were made to feel that way - I feel sorry for your (ex) friends kid having such a horrible catty (priorities skewed) mother x

MarthasGinYard · 09/08/2019 06:29

Loved our stokke got a bargain in the sales.

Both really tall so was perfect.

Dp picked it and he has no clue about what to be seen with for sure.

Those Bugaboo donkey things are hideously massive though I always grimace for the poor pusher.

JMAngel1 · 09/08/2019 06:29

This was def a thing a decade ago - I had two wealthy NCT friends who would only consider a bugaboo. When we met up, it would take them ages to set them up and dismantle tgem - such a faff. I had a baby mini jogger which literally collapsed in two in a second and was so lightweight. To add insult, one of them told me she was getting my one to take on holiday and they were going to leave it behind as it was so cheap - it was literally disposable to her - this was the buggy I used for 6 years!!!

Lucafritz · 09/08/2019 06:35

Laughing reading this thread 😂 i bought my travel system 2nd hand from a woman who used it once or twice with her newborn and decided she didn't like it cost her £600 cost me £100 its not a brand name like an icandy or bugaboo either but it's features suit my lifestyle just fine which is why i bought it. Personally in my area it seems to be those Silvercross Wayfarers with a fake fur hood and pram charms on them anytime i see a pram remotely expensive i think chav or they have no money but try make it look like they do with expensive purchases £1000 on a pram or handbag means £1000 less in your bank account i know which one id rather have

Frankie16Ronnie · 09/08/2019 07:15

It's not just prams people think their babies are fashion accessories altogether. I bought my pram in a nice clean condition second hand it looked new I don't understand buying a pram for £££s when there Only in it for a little while then you buy a stroller which I buy brand new as there cheap enough only £100 or so as long as baby is comfy and has room it doesn't matter.

MoreSlidingDoors · 09/08/2019 07:31

I don't understand buying a pram for £££s when there Only in it for a little while then you buy a stroller. That’s not the case for everyone. DD was in her travel system for 3.5 years. Stroller was only used on holiday (bought that second hand).

Lucafritz · 09/08/2019 07:38

I reckon my travel system will last till 3yrs too. I guess if you have mobility issues then the weight of them with a toddler in can be an issue but a normal healthy adult should have no trouble pushing one I tried the one i bought in the pram shop with several weighted bags in it that simulated a 3yr old and it was still fine to push lift up and turn etc

lazylinguist · 09/08/2019 07:41

as long as baby is comfy and has room it doesn't matter.

Exactly. I just don't understand why prams have to be a fashion accessory at all. Nobody I knew when my dc were babies was like this about baby stuff.

Mymycherrypie · 09/08/2019 07:48

Carrying a travel system upstairs is back breaking in comparison to carrying a Maclaren up the stairs. My travel system lasted a year. Mamas and papas pliko. I had a maclaren after that and the difference was unreal.

CherryBlu · 09/08/2019 07:57

Iv got a Bugaboo because I wanted a Bugaboo, iv pushed many prams and none of them push and move about as easily as the Cam, the carry cot is big and spacious (baby was in it for 6 months) and the seat is also nice and comfy (his a tall 2 year old and it's still our only pram). Mine was over a thousand pounds but I'm very lucky that my lovely parents wanted to buy it for me.
I had an Oyster for no 2 and a traditional pram for no 1.......I insisted on the traditional pram for my first baby and it was the most impractical thing (although beautiful) pain in the arse for the car and getting around shops etc I ended up getting a stroller and using that more.
Bugaboos are very practical and would get my vote every time, no snobbiness about it just that I think they are the best

Henlie · 09/08/2019 08:07

I don't understand buying a pram for £££s when there Only in it for a little while then you buy a stroller which I buy brand new as there cheap enough only £100 or so as long as baby is comfy and has room it doesn't matter

We were the same... We moved out the travel system at 12months and into an UppaBaby G-Luxe Stroller. Our decision was based around the fact we lived somewhere where we needed to get in the car for virtually every journey and we spent a lot of time getting the pram system in and out of the boot. It seemed sensible to move to something lightweight and could fold down easily with one hand (and we needed the boot space back!) Plus the above said stroller would almost recline flat and had large UV hood etc. It was perfect for us. Probably one of my best buys.

I think it might be different though if you live in a City/large town where you walk a lot, and straight out your door and don’t use the car a lot - in which case I can see why a travel system is used longer.

NewAccount270219 · 09/08/2019 08:31

Yes, we have both for our 13 month old - a pricey (but secondhand, so not so pricey for us!) travel system and a stroller - the stroller lives in the car and is only used if we go out by car, and the pram is used if we go out on foot or get the bus. In practice, that means we use the pram every day and the stroller about once a fortnight, but that's obviously a function of where we live.

We couldn't cope with just the stroller because it's a bit shit on anything but very flat pavement and because the handles don't extend which means DH (6'3) can barely push it because he kicks it as he walks and it gives me (5'10) a bad back - but admittedly we did buy a cheap one, maybe we could have found one that addressed these issues if we'd spent more!

Buyitinbamboo · 09/08/2019 08:38

@lolasmiles honestly if I did it again I would just buy an out n about nipper 360 and use it for both running and normal day to day use. If your on facebook there is a running with buggies page which will have lots of recommendations for other prams. Otherwise I'd get whatever pram you want for day to day and pick up a running buggy second hand for cheap

FairfaxAikman · 09/08/2019 08:39

The only person I know who had a Bugaboo bought it second hand as she had twins and it was still more than £500.
We bought an Uppababy Vista second hand because no way was I spending £1000 on a pram. We were lucky in that the couple had looked after it as they planned to use it for a second child but then ended up expecting twins.
TBH the only area I think it's absolutely worth spending the money is car seats - they should be a safety feature, not a fashion accessory and it maddens me to see so many kids in cheap, poorly-tested car seats.

Putapeonyinyourpocket · 09/08/2019 08:44

I have a bugaboo and brought it because of how durable it is and would cope with lots of different terrain when walking. I got the donkey for the side basket and I absolutely love it, nothing to do with status and clearly very few people in my village know about prams or pram status as I'm often stopped and asked about it.
Everyone is different and if your going to be using it for a good few years why not choose somthing you admire?

Heyha · 09/08/2019 08:55

Inverse snobbery here- I look at the mega money ones (not the ones with very specific features, just the ones that are straightforward like mine) and wonder why they bothered lumping out all the extra money. We got a maxi-cosi which I guess must be fairly uncool, and with all the bits it still came to nearly £600 (£400 for the wheels, lie-flat pushchair and car seat, £160 for the optional carry cot which is where DD has her daytime naps so very glad of it, and £40 for the isofix base second hand). It was the easiest to put together, manoeuvre and had the biggest basket out of the ones I tried, I didn't even look at the £800+ ones. I love everything about it apart from the car seat has a couple of annoying quirks.

Lady86 · 09/08/2019 09:51

We were offered our baby cousins second hand pram in good condition so it was hard to justify spending £££ on something that isn't even used for that long. I'd rather put the money into letting her attend clubs etc. I washed all the fabric and frame and bought a new mattress.

When I was looking at buying the most important things to me were comfort for baby, size that would fit in my car boot, decent baggage carrying area then overall look. We had a silvercross wayfarer (although lent to us second hand from relatives) and it was very practical and certainly didn't feel anyone looked down on the pram. No one could even tell it was second hand, particularly as on this model we were able to buy new hood and apron set in pink (the original set was blue) so literally looked like a new pram for fraction of the price. Although we got ours free I've seen barely used prams being sold for a small fraction of the original price. So if you must have the fanciest brand on a budget second hand can be not such a bad option as you might initially think.

anitagreen · 09/08/2019 10:23

I've only ever used a stroller once why do people think the bugaboo cam only suits a baby? I've had both my toddlers in it never needed a stroller

DaisyChains6 · 09/08/2019 10:38

I never knew prams/pushchairs were a "thing" until my dp told me his ex wife insisted on a bugaboo when they had their dd. Apparently she boasted about making a friend at a mum and baby group because the woman had the bugaboo in "cream" (which is desirable apparently. 🙄)

Apparently when she had a couple of friends round for play dates it must have looked "great" seeing 3 bugaboo pushchairs all lined up in the porch

I said to him if I was aware of the pushchair snobbery when mine were small I'd know which house to avoid rather than anything else....

DaisyChains6 · 09/08/2019 10:42

My friend had a Gracio pushchair for all 3 of her kids. As in the same pushchair! That chair went on and on and on! 😁 She walks everywhere too as she doesn't drive.

Now they are all in secondary school no one would know who had what pram and the kids are all just fine.

CatteStreet · 09/08/2019 10:49

We were given a no-name pram and lent a Babybjörn for our first. Was good to have him in a very simple stroller at a year.

My second was in a pram (decentish brand but old and second-hand) probably three or four times, my third never. The rest of the time it was a Marsupi and later Manduca carrier for the first year-18 months and then a Maclaren, much more convenient for buses and trains than a heavy pram.

I admit to liking the look of the Bugaboo-type ones (which were very en vogue when my older two were small), but absolutely not enough to spend that kind of money.

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