iCandy Strawberry- do i hang on for it or, if not, what else?

[Jendo]

I'm expecting baby no.3 in Oct and looking for a new pushchair. With no.1 I had a M&P Pliko Pramette, which I liked at the time but got fed up with the bulk of car seat on top of pushchair and I wanted a car seat with isofix so traded in for a Silver Cross Surf....loved this, easy to push, lovely looking but I'm over the two part fold with other kids gear in the boot (bike or scooter for my eldest) and shopping basket was useless, far too small.
So been in the lookout for another (gonna sell my Surf on ebay, where I bought it for a bargain too!)....totally love the look of the icandy strawberry but haven't been able to get my hands on one to try and the expected delivery dates seem to keep getting extended (ive heard most recently after warehouse thefts there's now some legal dispute with their manufacturer in China- anyone else hear this or is it true?).
I'm wondering whether to go order blind and hope it appears on time (anyone had an update?) or think of alternatives (but havent found any I love anywhere near as much to date :-( )....thoughts????

I'm not desperate for it since I can hold on to my surf but wud really like it to be there in time so it is this baby's buggy!

I really want:
light (one of my fave features of strawberry)
Compact- folds with seat, the smaller the better!
Maxi cosi adaptors - not buying new car seat!
Stylish- I want a pretty buggy that's functional too
Not too low (thats what put me off the Bee)

Also anyone know if strawberry can take a buggy board for my 2yo or know of a good buggy that can be converted to double that still fits with what I'm looking (I don't think my 2yo will be in buggy for much longer but if there was an option out there then great....saw the baby jogger city
Select but was put off by weight given I'm not even sure I need a double)

Phew long post, sorry, being picky I know but now I know what I want from learning from the last 2 want to see what's out there.

All advice/thoughts gratefully received!!!

I don't know how light it is but have you had a look at the Oyster? It folds in one piece even when in rear-facing mode. It's one of the ones I considered this time round.

I gave up waiting and went with the iCandy cherry, I love it! I also ordered the uppababy vista as it was everything I wanted in a pushchair, but cancelled it as it was too wide.

If your 2 year old will just be 2, then I would without question get a double pushchair. If they are nearer 3, then I would probably stick with a buggy board. But if you put a buggy board onto a Strawberry then you will invalidate your warranty - and with an iCandy a warranty is worth having.

Thanks to u both!
PeazlyPops I was really tempted by the Cherry and could still be but other than the bigger basket don't think it offers more than my surf since it's still 2 parts. Not sure I could justify the spend if that's all I'm gaining, gorg though it is!!
I was wondering about the Vista actually, surprised to hear it's too wide...is that across the rear wheels then?

AKMD I did look at the oyster gem (altho only online so far) but I just didn't love the look of it like I do the strawberry! Not sure why as technically it ticks the boxes!

I didn't know that re the warranty Tiggywunkle....oh no it gets more confusing!!!!
She's just 2 but pretty singleminded and been walking since 10 months. Her older sis refused to touch a buggy from 2 so dithering in case I waste my money!

John Lewis has Strawberries in store to try out. I have no idea about the lead times if you decide to place an order though.

Ah yes the cherry is 2 part fold unfortunately, but it's ridiculously light so that sort of balances it out! I wish there was a perfect pushchair, I found it so difficult to choose!

Thanks nancerama...no John Lewis in Ireland :-(

We have Just brought the iCandy Strawberry today after looking around for quite awhile.....we love it.
We brought it from www.affordablebabycare.co.uk/ they have them in stock and according to there website will deliver to Ireland for a £15 charge. There is no price on their website as iCandy do not allow them to show prices on the internet but they were a lot cheaper than John Lewis when we compared prices. After putting a deposit of £200 they have put one aside for us and also allowed us to store it at their warehouse until the baby is due after which we'll have to pay the remainder of the balance before delivery.

Thanks Chossy. Will check them out. Do u mind me asking how much u paid (and did u buy carrycot?)

Thanks for that site Chossy, I haven't come accross it before

I bought the Oyster over the iCandy Cherry or Strawberry. The Strawberry felt quite heavy to me, especially in comparison to the iCandys.

The wait time and problems I've seen about iCandy customer service would concern me, and would probably play cautiously about ordering one blindly.

Hi, Just thought I'd say hello and that I had an Icandy Strawberry delivered on Saturday, It is I must say absolutely gorgeous and u will not be dissapointed!!! the only trouble u may have is the size of it when folded is is quite bulky, however the back wheels are removable and u just push a button in the middle of the wheel and slide them off. I understand not everyone would do this, but for how lovely the buggy is this would only be a minor annoyance. they do recommend u try one in boot of the car before u buy as they are bigger folded than the peach, but if u are saving space by it folding in one piece then its not a problem.

As for the manufacturing problems, They are actually catching up now with deliveries throughout the U.K in July so I imagine if you get your name down now you should be fine. Where do you live as I live near Birmingham and the independent stockist I went to had problems, however my parents live in Norfolk and I got a refund and went to a stockists there and I had it within 2 weeks so you have to be quite clever about where you go lol. John Lewis is best bet as they have the major contract with Icandy and they seem to be getting the orders and as for price if you obtain a price from a local stockist John Lewis will price match :)

Sorry to ramble on if u need any help then let me know I can send pics of folded size etc or any other pics if you would like. Other than that BUY IT!! haha personally if I had gone with something else and seen someone else with a Strawberry I would have been heartbroken it's beautiful!! xxx

Oh and I paid £760 for Stroller (with frame), Carrycot, car seat adaptors and maxi cosi cabriofix (free) and the 2 colour packs xx

Justine09x thanks so much, think that's reminded me that I really am keen on the strawberry and if they are getting them back in stock then I think I'll plump for it (and hedge my "double" bets by getting a cheap double off gumtree or somewhere). I reckon the handful of times I need a double will be outweighed by the number of times I either just have baby with me when older ones at nursery or on the days my 2yo isn't at nursery she's prob fine walking most places but if it's far I can use the backup double.
Your price sounds good too esp since it included car seat. I have it already so I'll call round a few of my local stockists (belfast) and see if they r getting them back in and what price they can do.
Then just gotta get my Surf and Quinny zapp up for sale!!
Thanks for all advice, I'll let u know if I gette strawberry and how it goes! X

Ps the fold up doesn't bother me I don't think as it must still take up less room than 2 piece buggies in the boot??!!
Some pics r always good (esp of it folded with seat in) and what colour did u go for? I'm thinking of the red I think, but was starting to be tempted by earl grey?? Liked black but wondered wud I get bored ( or wud it be perfect as it hides the dirt lol) and thought the purple in the pictures looked a bit girly in case I have a boy!

U will absolutely love it when you see it I can garauntee it lol, I had an apple when my son was born and my daughter was 2 years old, but she used to walk or i'd put my son in a sling?? its worth a thought it was only really picking her up from nursery I would take a buggy for her as she was tired. I did buy a cheap maclaren double off ebay, but to be honest it was such a chore I just used my sling in the end. I will take some pics in a bit and post them. I agree the purple is girly, but all the other colours are unisex. My stockists let me pick the colour when I knew what I was having or if u are not finding out then the other colours are lovely, i've seen the red and Grey in John lewis both are really nice. Final piece of advice is that they do the colour packs in two fabrics now? so u can have original or chilled......the original is a wool material and harder to clean and the chilled is a nylon wipe clean so I went for chilled lol.

Let me know how you get on I hav been seeing on Icandy fb page that they are rectifying the delivery issues with N.Ireland and trying to catch up on orders xx

Hi Jendo, We opted for the red pomegranate colour and paid £670 for the Stroller (with frame), Carrycot and maxi cosy car seat adaptors. Justine09x got an excellent deal for £760. Luckily we are getting the Maxi-Cosi Cabrio Fix Car Seat and Maxi-Cosi Easy Base from a relative whose child is just about growing out of it.

That sounds a great price Chossy. I've emailed them! Thks :-)

Got the following response from! Affordablebabycare..."HI there Sorry we are not allowed and don?t deliver to anywhere with ICandy products as per their stockist agreement. Thanks"

Really annoys me how buggies seem to be one area where you are restricted from shopping around for the best price. I buy most things online...this policy of no prices that icandy and silver cross etc do seems really anti-competitive to me...I'm surprised it's allowed...still trying to get local stockists to see what they have.

iCandy do not sell online, only instore. When I looked at one (it was over an hours drive away), I asked if I could call back and order over the phone, and was told I couldn't.

It was something to do with wanting to ensure the customer got a 'good experience' when buying...

I suspect it's more about wanting to ensure the prices stay premium!!

Hi Jendo
I have the Strawberry (in Earl Grey) and love how beautiful it is. It also steers really well - is a dream to handle one handed and feels really nice to push and feels sturdy and well made. However a couple of things that have annoyed me in the past few weeks since starting to use it:

• The carrycot has a slight downwards slope on it and my dd ends up wriggled right down at the foot of it in a crumpled heap! It also seems quite wobbly on the chassis too. I'm hesitant about using it for overnight sleeping for this reason, which is a disappointment because was really hoping to not have to take Moses basket with us when we go away.

• I find having the carrying bar of the carrycot across the middle makes it really awkward lifting dd in and out of it easily. Ironically this was one of the features I liked about the Strawberry before using it because I think having the bar there makes it easier to carry the carrycot, but hadn't really considered the ease of lifting baby in and out! Also, the folded chassis and carrycot will just fit into the boot of my car (Ford Focus), but only with the bar of the carry cot removed so we have to take it off each time. I find it quite fiddly to take the bar off. So all in all, having the bar in that position is a really bad design imho!

• I think the basket underneath isn't deep enough. It's quite hard to get shopping bags in and out of when the carrycot is on and I have had stuff (rain cover and aforementioned evil carrying bar!) fall out of the basket so really don't trust putting stuff in there, especially if its fairly lightweight.

Sorry to add confusion to the decision making process but thought you'd like to know the niggles! It's still beautiful though! I got mine in John Lewis and didn't have any problems with supply, but I see that's not an option for you (deepest sympathies for living somewhere without easy access to JL....)

Thanks blushingmare ...I actually bought the strawberry last night on ebay!
I know carrycot will be a bit bulkier but plan to largely use it walking and car seat on chassis when in the car.
On the bumper bar, I do find it odd that this isn't gate opening style like my surf but hopefully won't be too niggly.
And on the carrycot I think someone else mentioned a tilt on a forum a while back and there was advice on a stabilization bar or something?
I'll soon find out how I get on with it but fingers crossed! I'm v excited at my purchase, can't wait for it to arrive!!

Ps any basket has got to be better than the postage stamp under my surf!!!
Thanks for all advice x