And even if a mum did know and did care, she would have had difficulty in finding cloth nappies in the shops (and don't forget that the internet wasn't so important then). Now the topic is discussed on Radio 4 by the new Environment Minister! Few areas of our industry reach such heights!

Cloth nappies are now widely available - even in the supermarkets where mum can pick them up with the weekly shop! This reflects the greater number of mums buying cloth. There are some interesting figures from the Wilkinet survey. Carried out in June this year, the survey found that of those who had kids but were not pregnant, 31% owned cloth nappies, a further 8% planned to buy but a whopping 61% had no interest. Compare this then with those who have kids and were also pregnant. Here a similar number (29%) owned cloth nappies but now 24% planned to use them and only 46% had no interest. Of the first time pregnant mums the figures are similar. Only 13% own them at the time of the survey but another 45% plan to with only 42% with no interest.

These figures boil down to two interesting facts. Half the pregnant mums who come into your shop are in the market for cloth nappies and that proportion is increasing.

A lot of the interest in cloth nappies is taking place on the internet. There are several websites with forums on discussing which nappy is best. And the advice usually boils down to “try a selection”. There are many sites promoting nappies and many who are selling them. But cloth nappies are still a product that many mums prefer to see and touch before they buy. And many mums still need to understand the pros and cons of the different brands. Having a few nappies on a shelf somewhere is not enough any more. Retailers now need to offer a choice. And they need to show them off. Display stands, leaflets and other POS are available from several suppliers to help you get talking.

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