Kiddicare.com makes the leap to the high street

30 January 2012 - 13:39

Online baby items outlet, Kiddicare.com, is expanding into the high street in the UK, after it took advantage of the recent exit of US electronics chain, Best Buy.

A total of 10 new shops in places such as Enfield, Nottingham and Rotherham are being opened by the company, which offers safe shopping online to thousands of people across the country.

Kiddicare is not completely inexperienced when it comes to operating a bricks and mortar shop, because its enormous store in Peterborough is already something of a hit and has been dubbed the largest store of its kind in Europe.

Retail fans may be aware of Best Buy's brief foray into the UK, where it opened 11 stores in partnership with the Carphone Warehouse and even had a portal for safe shopping online, although all of these outlets, both online and off, have now been terminated.

You may also remember that Kiddicare became a subsidiary of supermarket giant Morrisons in 2011, after the company announced its intentions to try and enter the online grocery market, a sector from which it is still absent.

Kiddicare's main rival on the high street will be Mothercare, which has closed over a hundred stores in recent months after making losses. The size of Kiddicare's shops is likely to cause problems for any competitors and it seems that its brand is so far finding some traction amongst consumers.

It is interesting to see any company move from the world of the web into the high street, as this usually happens in the opposite direction, with companies harried out of bricks and mortar stores due to flagging sales.

Megastores for newborns might work well in the 10 new locations for Kiddicare across the UK, although those who are not particularly near an outlet can still use their internet connection to buy its products.

Latest News

Consumers value community recommendations, e-commerce survey finds

24 May 2012 09:26

A study, published by Reevoo this month, found that more and more people who participate in safe shopping online are swayed in their decision making by things like user reviews and the recommendations [...]

Tesco brings hybrid e-commerce service to America

23 May 2012 16:02

Tesco has already had success with its Click & Collect service here in the UK, but the company has recently announced that it is going to be introducing this type of e-commerce option to customers [...]

Pinterest earns investment from e-commerce head

22 May 2012 09:57

Social networking service, Pinterest, which has risen to prominence in recent months, has received a £63 million cash injection, courtesy of Hiroshi Mikitani.
Mr Mikitani is the man who is [...]