to think its RIDICULOUS that Boots, M&S ect all put their children / baby sections on the upper lowr floors rather than the ground ones

[Disenchanted3]

so you always have to frig about with lifts / stairs / esculators with the kids?! Surely it makes more sense that the people without buggies have to travel further?

Even with the one floor Boots stores they shove the baby section right at the very back so you have to drag 3 fed up kids through miles of orange women spraying Jordans latest piss perfume in your eyes, acres of bright white shelving full of brighly coloured shampoo bottles that are just begging to be knocked down skittle style by a 4 year old and make up sections that just look like sweet shops!

Why not just put thm at the front / ground floor so I can be in and out in 3 minutes and not have to be painfully reminded that I should be wearing perfume/ makeup / shaving.

Harrumph.

Because for safety reasons, when you're distracted, the last thing you need is your toddler unattended right by the door to a busy street...

I think it's probably a fact that mothers are the biggest spenders and women are more likely than men to 'impulse buy'

So by putting baby stuff etc at the top/back you have to walk through aforementioned shit which you might suddenly decide you absolutely MUST HAVE

Annoying, I agree

Oh I hate this. Our local Dorothy Perkins has their maternity wear up a horrible flight of stairs and no lift. Very hard to waddle walk up them heavily pregnant. And Russell and Bromly have the kids' shoe department downstairs, plus you're not allowed to take the pram downstairs. You have to leave it by the door! I'm surprised nobody has had their pram pinched yet.

But its safe for thm to tuble down a flight of stairs / esculator?

Nope not buying that one, lol

Besides every 'Boots' that I know is in the middle of a shopping area, not near a road iykwim?

I would imagine they do the logical marketing thing and put their best selling items closest to the entrance.

Plus, I have a phobia of lifts so its virtually impossible for me to shop with the kids

Because people who need to go to the baby section might make a deliberate trip to the store, whereas people who buy the things near the door are more likely to be passing and think 'ooh, I need some more deodorant now that I think about it, will just pop into Boots'.

Completely agree. If it's got a lift I'm slightly mollified, but if not, how the hell am I supposed to get a buggy up stairs. Who on earth thinks it's a good idea to put children and baby sections in the least accessible areas? It does give you a bit of an insight into just how difficult it must be to be in a wheelchair

YABU

notnowbernard is right
awkward for us, good for profits

also would not be good to (eg) put the baby stuff right inside the door so people wanting any other dept have to clamber over 200 pushchairs

What ilove says, although YANBU to object to being reminded about the fragrance/maquillage/depilation thing (although I'm sure you are perfectly groomed at all times)

well in M&S it would be very awkward for the elderly to go up 3 floors to get to the food and clothes

I think in general parents are fitter than the elderly

Nawww, all them old people got scooter these days innit?

It my lift phobia that does it for me though.

I hav to have someone with me so they can take the kids in the lift otherwise I can't go shopping as I won't get in one.

Boots, M&S, H&M, Primark and Next are the ones I usually go in but can't if Im alone as they all have the stuff I ned on higher floors,

Oh and TKMaxx do it too but I can go in their lifts as they are glass (its claustrophobia)

notnowbernard is right, I saw a programme on the psychology of how we shop and it's definitely to make women walk past more merchandise.

Another thing shops do is place the things they want to promote/get shot of to the right of the door, as apparently most people will tend to turn right rather than left when they first walk in. I have no idea why though, can't remember that bit.

Because they don't want you to be in and out in three minutes.

This doesn't bother me if there is a lift I can get the buggy into, but most Clarks shoe shops I have been into seem to have their children's sections on the 1st floor.

I don't really like to leave my buggy on the ground floor as the basket is inevitably filled to the brim with stuff and don't want to leave it unattended or faff around and get everything out of the basket.

But get this, in the Richmond Clarks store I asked one of the assistants to help me with carrying my buggy upstairs and they refused because of their health and safety policy. This is health and safety gone mad in my opinion, but that is a whole different discussion.

Our boots has the baby equipment upstairs and no customer lift - asked where the lift was one day and got taken up in the service lift, took bloody ages. They do have food/nappies/dummies downstairs but so annoying that there is no lift! And again baby stuff on ground floor is right at the back of the shop.

Have you noticed that maternity clothes are always positioned so you have to walk past the baby clothes first?

i'd imagine it's because they're items and stock aimed at a specific consumer. where as they can put items aimed at everyone nearer to the door. you won't get nearly as many people walk through the door on an impulse to buy baby goods if they see it in the window when walking by.
where as you'll get more people through the door on impulse if you have goods aimed at a wider group of people in the window.

YANBU, I hate this too, but it's all about the psychology of shopping and getting us to trawl past all that tempting stuff.

Our M&S drives me to distraction as it has one very slow and very busy lift and it can take three of four passes before there is space to fit me, DD and the buggy in the thing.

Not buying your argument bigchris as the food is in the basement in ours and the old gents high waisted trousers on the same floor as the kids!

I suddenly gained loads of empathy for people in wheelchairs once I gave birth and started using a pram. London Underground being one of the worst offenders!

Come to Milton Keynes.

The Boots here has 3 entrances, none of which go out onto a street cause it's inside the shopping center and all the baby gear is right by one of the doors

You still have to go upstairs for baby stuff in John Lewis, H&M, Gap etc though.

In our local Boots you have to use a really horrible lift, I don't think they do have a captive market, I just use the out of town mothercare and tescos, where I can get everything I can in Boots, and don't have to faff about with lifts. Same with babyGap, makes no sense.

ooh god i hate this!!! was working today (im a nanny) and had to get a buggy & 2 kids plus shopping down 2 flights of stairs because the lift was broken to get some wipes and nappies...finally got to the bottom...they didnt have them i asked a member of staff if the could give me a hand back up the damn steps and the reply? sorry we cant... health and safety!

ooh im getting riled up now!!

Sorry, I have been on holiday and I seem to have missed a new government policy that states that mothers have a right to everything being made easier for them, and that everyone else in the world should give them priority.

Priority over parking places at supermarkets, priority on sofas in a coffee shop, priority on spaces on public transport, priority on being able to get their shopping in the easiest way.

I can totally understand the frustration that people feel, but there are others in the world who have some rights and opinions too.

How do we expect out children to grow up respecting other people, being willing to give up their seat on the bus for en older person etc, when the current patterns seem to prioritise parents and children above everything else.

eyebrow, you missed making Tesco design new trolleys specifically so pregnant women can lift their toddlers in and out more easily...

no I am not kidding, but she did gracefully acknowledge SWBU after about 90 posts

actually I think AIBU brings out the worst in all of us - either we are whining for special treatment or we are taking glee in slapping down the whiners because we do all that and walk uphill to school both ways with nowt but coal to eat