To really dislike those Bounty packs that get forced upon us, whether we want them or not?

[electra]

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised since everything is a commodity today. But for some reason I find them in such poor taste. You go for a booking appointment with a midwife, so very early on in a pregnancy and it's an opportunity for you to be bombarded with advertisements for oak cots and so on...

I feel it's not entirely appropriate that healthcare providers buy into this kind of thing and endorse it and I felt the same when I was given one after dd2 was born and I barely had the energy to mumble 'I don't want one thanks'

I quite liked the Bounty packs.

I gave them my 'other' email address and no phone number, and in return got some free stuff. I only ever use the coupons if I was going to buy the item anyway, and all the useless stuff goes in the bin.

Always nice to get something for nothing!

We already have a few things. We're super small so it's case of building it up.

Sudocrem - who are stopping all sampling now
A mini Cif spray
A huggies nappy
A Pampers nappy and a few sensitive wipes
A pack of water -wipes - awesome for very sensitive bottoms 99.9% water with a 100% natural extract to stop bacterial growth - WE love these.
IN Irish republic we have a few extra products not available in the north.
WE include leaflets from the Blood local blood transfusion services - as newly delivered mothers so often need blood
Some Persil - 2 sachets I think
Some Comfort - a mini bottle
We are woking on some breast pads. Food or food related stuff in these bags. we don't want to encourage anything that might be bad for babies.

I have contacted Tena to see if we can come up with something on Pelvic Floor Exercises.

Our rates are nothing like Bounty's but we can't quite make ends meet at the moment.

We do have a database - but we do not sell it EVER - we do end out e-zines - but mums can unsubscribe.

I hated the whole hard sell pictures thing - my twins lived for a few hours and I felt like a pariah cos the Bounty photo lady's total dismissal of me when i was already feeling quite delicate.

I am going to speak to some more ecologically aware brands as I'd love to move in that direction.

I'd love to get someone to sponsor a chocolate bar or a treat for mum and I'll probably chase that up.

I want mums to enjoy the samples but not be pestered with junk mail and hard sell. We don't compromise on that - tempting though it may be. Every mum in the office has their own birth story and standards are important.

It's very hard to crack the Bounty Monopoly but the Gp's and HV's like what we've done so far.

Anneni

RambleOn 'Her bloody pregnancy is sooooo far removed from mine. I hope in the next edition SHE finds out at week 7 that her lovely supportive Nick is shagging a 17yo in the back of their van.'

Oh Ramble that made me laugh - but very sorry if you had a shit pregnancy. x

Back when I had my first (OMG 17 years ago!) Bounty stuff came in a great big box with loads of tat useful freebies. It just arrived on the end of my bed when I'd nipped to the loo, as though the box fairy had been. :)

The tiny pot of Sudocrem was the best thing in it back then too and the diary thing was exceedingly smug.

Love the idea of false names. Come on guys!!!

-Bethan Louise Handclap, 67 Avenue Street, Shockley

• Miranda D'Orange, 3 Almost Drive, Tannley Moor.

• Binky Flurodent, The Gables, Flunk.

• Catherine D. Hesitation, Little Wimmingthrust

• Vanessa Barcode, Dobey Shortplop

• Rachel Bounty, The Bounties, Bounty Hatebounty

Oh I got all riled when I saw this thread in active convos, ready to give my spiel.

And then realised it was from 2009 and I already had said it all

Ann. My estimation of such schemes would rise hugely if there was a good quality breastfeeding leaflet in them with all the helplines, and also one on safe co- sleeping.

Perhaps you could get Nestle to sponsor it (provided they had no editorial control),

I haven't approached Nestle - for obvious reasons :)

Maybe if we could put some real life stories on feeding, co-sleeping etc together for bags and even website - it would give a different angle on the topic than the pretty and perfect Emma.

I stuggled with BF'ing myself - but won through in the end, despite one midwife standing beside me and my daughter with a mini-bottle of SMA with a teat on the end, making poor hungry baby comments - In fairness it was the nineties - but still!!! I think at one stage i was worried she might turn into a vampire I was bleeding so much - but the info didnt mention any of that

From the other side - I had a friend who couldn't BF as she had to start chemo straight after birth and she said all the info made her feel really, really guilty.

One of my next tasks to revamp our website so all feed back is invaluable.

Haven't read the whole thread, but Mama Packs are a good alternative to Bounty packs.

Anneni, you really need to start your own thread (people are getting bogged down in slagging off Bounty) and I think you probably need to approach MN to check with them if this is market research.

Good luck though.

I'd be interested to know if the stuff put into the Bounty packs vary depending on where you live but I DO know that I had my son fifteen years ago and the Bounty bag did have tons of vouchers and that but also a decent amount of samples. Flashforward ten years - same hospital and I'm having my daughter. This time the Bounty bag was full of crappy 50p off vouchers, NO sudocreme and a pair of disposable knickers. So I think the quality of the Bounty bag has gone down anyway.

The Acorn pack is a nicer alternative if you live in the relevant areas.

I liked mine.

Besides, don't you have to fill in a form and go and get one? Apart from when I had my DS in hospital, I've always had to go a physically get one from Boots or wherever.

Anyway, I've got some use out of the money off vouchers and the little free bits and bobs :)

It was the rice pudding from our bounty pack that gave DS his first and worst allergic reaction. I like free stuff but I went off them a bit after that

I had to kick the stupid, rude, puhy bounty woman out of my room after DD was born. I told her I didn't want her bag of adverts and she kept coming every day!

I felt so strongly about it I put in my birth plan that I do not consent to a visit or pack.

Oh I don't like them anyway. Full of adverts for stuff I can't afford, and full of packs of stuff I don't use. At least my neighbour is good for fairy liquid, ariel and all the other guff.

Wish I'd thought of thatStarlight! People go on about the "freebies*....what? A miniature bottle of bepanthen and one nappy? It's a pisstake!

I think the freebies have gone downhill since I got them (7 years ago). I got a tiny pot of sudocrem which I put in the first aid kit for grazes. I think there were several nappies of various brands and a carton of baby milk (I was bf ing but it was great in my hot chocolate!)
There was an inordinate quantity of paper tat though.

I got the sudocrem, 1 nappy and also a nappy thing which you put the dirty nappies in...like a bin with a tight slot. Mum pointed out it was disgusting to keep a bin full of nappies in the house all day and we dumped it. That was also 7 years ago. With DD2 3 years ago, I got much less. It's a lot of rubbish and Bounty can shove off.

No-one tells beforehand that you you can say no to the Bounty woman, so of course most people obediently give all the personal info the perky, pushy, nosy reps ask for.

The packs are full of rubbish - ads, coupons for things you don't need. This hard-sell taking advantage of women who've just given birth is really objectionable.

Hmmmm

Funny thing.....ever since I contributed to this thread the other day...I have been getting emails from Bounty! I never have before!!

Weird.

Anyway....good link blueemerald

Erm.... to all those saying they wanted the Child Benefit claim forms: they are online. www.hmrc.gov.uk/forms/ch2-online-stubb.htm

This is an old thread.