Dive Brief:

• Bashas' and Food City stores across Arizona are expanding their baby departments with more than 600 new items from food and formula to diapers and wellness products, according to a company release.
• The upgraded baby departments are the latest addition to Bashas' and Food City’s array of family-focused services. Currently, the stores offer free pre-natal vitamins, from-scratch cakes for children’s birthdays and, in some stores, supervised play centers.
• More than 20 stores will have completed the expansion by January 2020. The company plans to implement an expansion in every Bashas’ and Food City store over the next two years.

Dive Insight:

Bashas’ and Food City have already made appealing to families a priority with a variety of programs that promote family health and wellness and aim to make the shopping experience easy for busy parents. By ramping up their baby departments, the company is showing yet another way they are targeting parents and families.

While almost every consumer segment says it is looking for convenience, one group that benefits most from an efficient shopping trip is new parents. A recent survey by Valassis found that parents are more likely to shop online and choose specific stores for convenience. Bashas’ and Food City are banking on a wide selection, deals, freebies and special programming will be enough to get moms and dads to shop in-store instead of online.

When it comes to children, new parents are also willing to invest in high-quality products like organic and non-GMO that will be beneficial for their children's growth and well-being. It's in grocer's best interest to cater to these shoppers. Supermarkets dominate sales for baby food, including two-thirds of formula sales and 60% of other food, according to a GlobalData study. But individuals are also putting off having children until later in life, resulting in a significant reduction in the number of births per year, which could impact sales of baby food.

Other retailers have expanded their baby departments, as well. Target has increased its children and baby sections to fill the void left when major retailers Gymboree and Babies “R” Us went out of business. The retailer added more toys, clothing and home goods for kids, and also expanded the selection of diapers and baby wipes in its private label line hoping to attract more time-pressed parents who are looking for a one-stop-shop. Retailers now have an opportunity to start selling products that were once the domain of department or children’s specialty stores whose sales are sliding.