How we bring up our children has always been subject to public scrutiny
and never more so than recently with the media hype surrounding
childhood obesity and the pressure that children seem to be facing from
an increasingly young age with regards to school tests and evaluations.
When it comes to how they are dressed, you would think that
would be simple – surely you just choose hard wearing,
comfortable clothes appropriate for the weather, things they can run
around and enjoy life in! However, it seems that even with
something as simple as clothing there are more complex issues lurking
beneath the surface.
A survey commissioned by the BBC Money Programme in March 2007
identified the key costs of bringing up children as Childcare, Toys,
Clothes and helping the child through University. When it
came to clothing, the survey revealed that 65% of parents admitted
spending more on their children's clothes than on their own.
This survey was not alone in its findings. It would appear
the increasing obsession with celebrity culture and consumer pressure
is driving many parents to give into the ‘urge to
splurge’ and spend more than ever before on designer labels
for their children to wear. This is particularly true in our
current cash rich, time poor age where parents often spend on their
children to alleviate their own feelings of guilt or frustration at not
spending the time they would like to with their children.
Research undertaken by Vox Pops International into licensing and young
children identified that many parents admitted that it was their own
tendency to choose merchandised goods that was contributing to their
children’s desires for licensed toys and branded
goods. Many parents even confessed to choosing
characterized goods before their children were born, such as products
for the nursery, bedding, or the first baby clothes.
Undoubtedly the merchandisers have a role to play here with their
relentless advertising encouraging consumerism, peer pressure and
pester power, but maybe as parents we also need to stop and think about
what we are doing and what more we could be doing to avoid this type of
consumer pressure or at least help our children understand it.
As parents we are responsible for our children’s development
and should encourage independent thinking. Can we make them
more aware, and better capable of meeting, the influences that they are
exposed to? This may be as simple as avoiding or limiting
exposure to commercial television stations. When commercial
television is on, or advertising is around, point it out and help
children understand that the main goal of advertising is to make them
buy things—often things they don't need, and didn't even know
they wanted until they've seen the ad in the first place! If
you can laugh at how ridiculous this is together you will be on the way
to helping them distinguish between what they really need/want, and
what they think they need/want. All of this will help
encourage non-commercial values in our children by getting them to put
shopping into perspective and see it as an activity we undertake when
we need something, rather than an engaging pastime or hobby.
As with everything in life it is, of course, important to strike a
sensible balance. So, with children’s clothing, is
there an alternative to the extremes, on the one hand, of expensive
designer clothing which can almost turn your child into a mini adult, a
walking bill board or adult accessory, and, on the other hand, of the
cheap and often badly manufactured clothing at the other end of the
market? The good news is that as a parent you can choose and
find quality, design led clothing without the logos which will still
leave your child looking as a child and which is available at
affordable prices. What is more, if you spend time
with your child helping encourage these non-commercial values you can
be sure you are giving them what they really want and need –
more time with you rather than more consumer goods!
Malene Stanley is the founder of Kids Should be Kids and a busy mum of
two who believes that children should be dressed as children and not as
mini adults. Frustrated by the lack of good quality,
appealing yet unbranded kids clothes for girls and boys on the UK
market, Danish born Malene went back to her roots to source
contemporary, trendy, Scandinavian brands. These are now
available on her website.
The kids designer clothes she sells are traditional, hip, sweet,
functional, of a high quality and provide a great alternative to the
cropped tops and logos that seem to pervade the high street!
Every item of children’s designer clothing has been chosen
for its quality, wearability as well as looking great. If you
are after kids fashion style without the logos, including beautiful
dresses, skirts, trousers, shorts, tops, t-shirts, shirts and blouses
then Kids Should be Kids has it all for babies and children up to 9
years old.
