There are many reasons why pharmacies should engage with the baby category, not least because if pharmacy teams earn the trust of a parent early on in their child’s life, they may just gain a customer for life

Some pharmacies are reluctant to take on infant feeding as a major category and devote staff time and training as well as shelf space to an area that they feel is dominated by the supermarkets.

But the baby milks sector is going from strength to strength. Total sales of baby milks are currently worth £319.8 million, up 7.6 per cent year on year, and this is despite the growth of the total baby care category up only one per cent year on year to £1.47 billion (according to Kantar Worldpanel data, 52 weeks ending 9 October 2016).

Therefore, pharmacies can use this category as an opportunity to create and grow their business as well as to support parents and win customers for life. 

Customers who come to the pharmacy for advice and support on infant feeding will also purchase other baby care accessories, says Mandeep Mudhar, Numark’s director of marketing. Adding: “Pharmacists can provide that added element of advice with a purchase that the customer can’t get from a supermarket.” What’s more, training the whole pharmacy team to have conversations with parents about common infant feeding problems can have a huge impact on parents and the wellbeing of their children.

By offering good customer service to a parent, pharmacy teams can develop customer loyalty and the pharmacy may become the parent’s- destination for the whole family’s healthcare. So what have you got to lose?

What are the do’s and don’ts for improving the infant feeding category?

Do:

• Ensure the whole pharmacy team is well-trained and informed about infant feeding
• Advise breastfeeding as a first step 
• Offer a friendly ear, advice and support at the point of purchase or when the customer is browsing
• Link sales across the whole baby and infant care category  
• Locate the baby and infant care category in an easily accessible area to allow parents with pushchairs to access the shelves
• Ensure that merchandising makes it as simple as possible for time-pressed parents and carers to select products.  

Don't:

• Offer any price promotions, including discounting short-dated products or use point of sale material or special displays that could be seen to be promoting formula feeding 
• Fall foul of the Infant Formula and Follow-on Milk Regulations, which specify that only pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and other healthcare professionals can give advice on baby milks.