M&S first baby club targets big slice of £600m market

Marks & Spencer is launching its first ever baby club – which will offer discounts, advice and even parental wellbeing services – as part of plans to boost its share of £900m baby clothing market, building on its 6% share in kidswear to unlock further growth.

Dubbed ‘the parent hood’, the programme will only be available to members of its Sparks loyalty programme and is the latest attempt to broaden its appeal for families.

The strategy has already seen a 24% increase in family shoppers in food and an expanding customer base in clothing and home.

Free to join, ‘the parent hood’ will offer members savings of up to £250 each year and will provide M&S with an opportunity to foster a community and acquire and nurture both new and existing family customers, increase frequency of shop and drive greater cross-purchasing opportunities among customers who do not currently shop in other categories.

M&S maintains it leads the market on quality perceptions in kidswear (according to the YouGov Clothing BU perception survey June 2024) and continues to retain its market leading position on school uniform during Back-to-School season.

However, this year, M&S says it is looking to grow “consideration” among its rising number of family shoppers at an earlier life stage – birth and baby.

The retailer’s renewed focus on baby – which has included giving the baby category a stronger presence in store through improved signage and greater space – has already driven double digit sales growth in the category in 23/24. The retailer now sells more than 1.1 million baby grows every year.

To set the M&S baby club apart, the retailer has invested in differentiation and personalisation to create a proposition that is for both parent and baby and tailored to members’ journeys.

‘The parent hood’ is designed to bring together trusted value, recognition, inspiration and advice, and a sense of community, with access to exclusive offers from across M&S, from birthing bag essentials, choosing the right bra, postpartum wellbeing, nutrition for parent and baby, weaning recipes, to styling and activities for baby.

By joining M&S’ baby club and signing the ‘Parent Pledge’, members immediately receive 10% off M&S’ entire range of baby grows for 12 months, plus tailored offers across clothing and home, including maternity and nursing bras and bedding as well as products from Bloom & Blossom and This Works in Beauty.

In M&S’ Food Halls, members will receive offers across specialist products from Pampers to Piccolo organic baby food, while a range of partners including Mamas & Papas, which joined M&S in 2023, are also part of M&S’ baby club.

Meanwhile, following a successful trial throughout June and July, members who want to build connections in their local community can attend weekly parent and baby meetups in participating M&S Cafes across the country. Each week, members can exclusively enjoy a free slice of cake with the purchase of a hot drink.

M&S director of kidswear Alexandra Dimitriu said: “Our customers trust us for the hand-me-down quality of our kids clothing and with our growing style credentials and a presence in so many communities, there is so much opportunity to grow our market share through appealing to new customers and introducing existing customers to more of what we have to offer.

“As a mum, I’m incredibly excited to be launching M&S’ first baby club – the proposition we’ve created by remaining laser-focused on what baby – and parents – need, when they need it, is something I wish I had access to when I was a member of the 2am club!”

M&S director of loyalty, food marketing and masterbrand Sharry Cramond added: “The M&S baby club is the first of our special interest clubs for Sparks members, and we have big ambitions to make it the very best baby club in the country by bringing together the very best of M&S – from food, to clothing, to our cafes – and be a one stop shop for the UK’s incredible community of parents.”