Little Miss Fashionista
– Two thirds of children own at least one item of designer clothing –
Wednesday 29th June 2011: Kids have long been playing dress up but new research out today shows they are now doing it in designer labels with over a third (39 per cent) of children owning their first item of designer clothing by the age of two.
The study(1), commissioned by Sheilas’ Wheels home insurance polled parents with school-age children and found that the average cost of a child’s wardrobe is now a whopping £1,677 with almost two thirds (62 per cent) of children owning at least one item of designer label clothing.
Influenced by the rise of mini fashionista celebs such as Suri Cruise, Romeo Beckham and Kingston Rossdale, Brits are forking out on average £764 a year on the latest attire for their children with six per cent spending up to £1,500 annually. The average child has more than 154 items of clothing in their wardrobe, a shoe collection valued at over £190 and a toy collection worth £1,676.
According to the study, over a quarter of kids (26 per cent) wear a designer watch or item of precious jewellery, with eight per cent possessing an accessory valued up to a pricey £200. The average parent admits to buying over 64 items of brand new clothing for their child every year.
Over half (57 per cent) of the parents polled have splashed out on clothes their children have never worn whilst two thirds (66 per cent) admitted they have bought their offspring items they have only worn once. Almost a third of parents (31 per cent) said their children turn their nose up at hand-me-downs with over half (53 per cent) insisting on only wearing new attire.
Over a quarter of parents surveyed (26 per cent) admitted feeling guilty if they did not buy their child the latest fashion clothing. A further 39 per cent felt it was their ‘duty’ to keep their kids up-to-date with the latest trends whilst over two thirds (36 per cent) said they were worried their child would be bullied at school if they were not seen to be wearing the right clothing.
Jacky Brown at Sheilas’ Wheels home insurance said: “It used to be kids who followed in their parents’ footsteps but now it seems children are leading the way when it comes to keeping up with expensive fashion trends.
“Designer clothes and shoes for kids have become an increasingly popular purchase but parents must make sure they tot up the value of their child’s wardrobe to ensure they have ample contents insurance, as it’s crucial not to underestimate the cost to replace a little miss fashionista’s designer wardrobe. Luckily with Sheilas’ Wheels you get new for old cover on clothes.”
The study also found that it is not just clothes and shoes parents are feeling the pressure to buy their little treasures but gadgets and gizmos too, with the modern child carrying around a handheld computer game (59 per cent) an mp3 player (42 per cent), a digital camera (40 per cent) and a BlackBerry (17 per cent).
Regional Breakdown
• Scots splash out the most when it come to buying toys for their children with the average Scottish child owing a toy collection worth a whopping £1,998,86.
• Londoners spend the most on their child’s wardrobe with the average parent spending over £1,217 a year on the latest fashion trends.
• In comparison parents in Wales have spent the least on their child’s wardrobe in the past year, forking out a more modest average of £609.
Gender Breakdown
When it comes to spending, parents are splashing out more on their daughters’ wardrobe than their sons with the average spend per year equating to over £748 for boys and over £782 for girls. Boys have a more expensive toy collection totting up to an average of £1,703, in comparison parents are spending less on toys for their daughters with the average collection coming in at just under £1,649.
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For further information please contact the Sheilas’ Wheels press office at Mischief on 020 7100 9999 or email sheilaswheels@mischiefpr.com
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Notes to Editors:
(1) Sheilas’ Wheels used the independent online research company Fly Research who surveyed 1,039 parents with children aged between 4-17 from 24 June and 27 June 2011. FlyResearch is an online market research company. Its researchers are members of the MRS, PRCA, BPC and Esomar, and abide by their guidelines. Further information is available at www.FlyResearch.com
