Is anybody else's Boots putting up irritating signs by the infant formula?

[CorrieDale]

It's along the lines of: We're terribly sorry we can't offer you discounts on infant formula but these horrid regulations have made discounting illegal.

Is it a national thing or just my local branch? I have tried sabotage tactics when I see them, but wonder if there is anything else I can do.

no joke

MOM, it's the wording of them - can't remember exactly what it is - but I know I rolled my eyes when I saw them.

i can believe it cake. but then my mum didnt know milk wasnt made out of grass til she started bf and realised she didnt have to eat it there are some things you just dont think about!

i think hunkers post was aimed at me.
what im saying is that a family on low income with a ff baby would benfit from occaisional discounts.

not saying that it is right, and i know how the fm companies behave and market their products.
i am NOT condoning it, i dont think that they should be allowed to advertise, but i DO think that the key is (as always) proper education for mums to be.

my sil was told by a mw that there was no real diff between bm and fm, by friends and family that bf was a pita, she'd have no freedom. she didnt make a decision to ff based on finances, she made it based on misconceptions in society.

one of the causes of illness in ff babies is the milk being made up incorrectly with not enough powder. fm is expensive and the average baby gets through 5-6 tins a week, i cant remember how many you get for free with the surestart scheme but its not that many.

I doubt a lot of people think of what Formula is made from, yes it is an adequate way to feed a child, and sometimes the only possible way for some parents, but there should be tons more information about it that doesnt need to be looked for iyswim, maybe the signs in boots will make people wonder why and research it?

I doubt a lot of people think of what Formula is made from, yes it is an adequate way to feed a child, and sometimes the only possible way for some parents, but there should be tons more information about it that doesnt need to be looked for iyswim, maybe the signs in boots will make people wonder why and research it?

oooh the wording of it. I see.

haven't seen them so thought OP was disgusted by the sign itself

babies do not get through 5-6 tins of formula a week!
I FF DD and used apporx 1 tin a week by the time she was drinking the most, and was on IS at the time, I received one milk token a week, which is one tin, so it worked out fine.

lissie families on low incomes can get discount at baby clinics i think, i know i did when i was ff ds 6 years ago. but in that environment there are health professionals who can talk it through and help you with questions if you want to ask them. i know not all professionals are much use, i have come across them myself but at least the thought is there

babies do not go through 5-6tins a week, a month maybe if they feed a lot. but i found a large tin lasted about 6 days once the girls were on 8oz bottles.

if you are on benefits then you do get milk tokens/veg tokens which can be usedfor cows milk for breastfeeding mother, or formula.

sorry, my mistake. i just spoke to dh (dont really remember that much about it) and i stand corrected

Lissie, I do understand the difficulties a lot of women face. But just because formula discounts would help some women on low incomes in the short term, I don't think it's appropriate for them to be applied across the board.

It comes down to the same thing, time and again - educate people about breastfeeding, support them to do it and try to make it the societal norm. Because that would help women on low incomes far more in the long term.

Hunk, would you be Hunkermunker by any chance??
Someone needs help and you may be able to give it here

re the cost of breastfeeding. I am on my second breast pump (£85 the last one cost me!) plus lots of breast pads. Plus nursing bras. Plus some new tops with buttons down them. (not that I need an excuse to shop!). not forgetting the essential extra pastries / chocolate / nice things I need to keep my milk flow up

It's the wording of it that is so near the knuckle. No, it doesn't actually say 'horrid regulations' but it does make it clear that were it not for the Regulations, then the caring and sharing Boots store would be offering their valued customers a discount. Which will, of course, engender a negative response to the Regulations in those parents who didn't already know of them and, more importantly, the reasons they're in place. I think that it's even more tooth-itching (good phrase, Hunker) that it's done by a company which was called Boots the Chemist and who still, IMO, trade on that fact. They go to some trouble to ensure their stores still look like a chemist's shcp that just happens to sell other things, rather than like a supermarket with a tiny pharmacy attached (which is, of course, what they now are).

If Boots are that bloody keen on spreading largesse among the child-raising masses, then they could double-discount nappies or wipes or baby food. They don't have to have a dig at the formula Regulations.

I don't think anyone thinks Boots are keen on spreading largesse! They are a commercial business and the regulations are a PITA for them I expect - they would like to offer discount/multibuys on these products but they are not allowed to because of the regulations in place. Maybe they could word their explanation slightly more neutrally, but I think the idea is probably to reinforce to customers that it is not their decision not to give offers on these as well as other products.

Whether they should be called Boots the Chemist (are they still?) or not is a different question and whether they set out their store to look like a chemist is again a different question, presumably based on market research and not remotely illegal or immoral I don't think. Retailers use all sorts of tricks to get us to spend money there. 80% fat free anyone?

I think the suggestion that the wording of signs explaining that regulations restrict promotion of formula engender a negative response to the regulations is looking into it a bit too deeply tbh. And the restrictions are in place so any negative response to them on the part of customers is irrelevant really. Someone isn't going to buy formula who otherwise wouldn't because they go away with the sense that there are too many restrictions on it's advertising.

I used the wrong 'its' in the last line of my last post didn't I? . Before a pedant comes along!

Your analysis is probably correct FBB, but the impression all high-street stores like to give is one of spreading joy and saving the customer money. Do that many people think, when they buy infant formula, 'gee, I wonder why this is never discounted'? That's a genuine question, btw, not an ironic rejoinder. I think there's a difference between 'this is really costing me' and 'I wish Boots would do special offers on this' - or is that just semantics? Anyway, the point I'm trying to make (not very well, I know) is that you don't need to answer a question you haven't been asked, so unless there are in fact 1000s of people asking the question, and the staff genuinely are pissed off with having to give the same answer every time, then I can't see the point of putting up a little notice unless it is, as I suspect, to cause irritation with the Regulations and thereby add fuel to the formula-makers' fire, who already think that any kind of regulation on their industry is immoral (that's an indirect quote from the CEO of Nestle, btw).

I know all this seems a bit OTT, but Regulations aren't set in stone. These regulations already get a fair amount of flak and I can see that grass roots dissatisfaction would be as good a way to go to get shut of them as any. So a negative response from customers to them isn't irrelevant at all.

ok maybe grass roots dissatisfaction being irrelevant was not quite right. I didn't quite mean that but couldn't think of a way to phrase it how I did mean it. Maybe I meant insignificant? Anyway, I can't see people going away from a sign thinking 'ooh that's a bit over-restrictive' leading to the restrictions being lifted, but I take your point.
I can't imagine Boots are putting up the signs on purpose to cause irritation though.

There is nothing in the law to stop Boots doing a permanent discount on infant formula, right across the board. It's special offers and incentives that are outlawed, and drawing attention to them.

So if they were really, really sorry, they would just knock a few squids off the price of every brand and every type and keep that price permanantly low.

They would also not stock formula that made illegal claims, and would force manufacturers to put the up to date safety guidance on the packs.

I am totally in favour of cheap formula, as long as it is permanently cheap, and as long as the WHO code on marketing is adhered to .

That would mean no fluffy bunnikins and cutesy teddies on the packs, no daft sloganising ('closest to breastmilk') and no unverifiable claims ('supports your baby's immune system').

I'll give you the false claims etc but what's wrong with rabbits and teddies, am I missing something.

I don't know the guidelines well so excuse my ignorance, but are cute pictures banned and if so why?

Tiktok, you're a wonder. THAT's the weapon I am going to use - in fact, I shall write to the Manager tonight.