I’ve been hanging out with a lot of babies and their baby mamas this summer (I guess I’m at that age where such a thing is inevitable). It struck me, as I am sure it already had them, that this whole thing with baby clothes is such a big waste. You buy something for your little one and a month or two later it’s too big. Trading clothes with friends and family is one option, but what if you don’t have that? Enter Plum, a new service that describes itself as “a Netflix for baby clothes.”
Plum is a new subscription service for baby clothes, like “a Netflix for baby clothes.”
There’s got to be a better way, thought Caroline O’Connor, while sifting through piles of gifts and hand-me-downs. Her first baby was due in October, and amidst the excitement she wondered how she would ever handle all this… stuff. The idea for Plum, O’Connor says, was born as she explained the ideal solution to her husband: “If someone could drop matched bundles of my favorite brands at my door in the right sizes, already laundered with organic products.” Then she thought: “Good grief, why isn’t someone already doing this?” She decided that someone should be her.
Before starting Plum, O’Connor was a fellow at Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, teaching graduate students and executives a human-centered approach to designing innovation. Little did she know this would lead her to baby clothes.
Plum offers bundles of two, four or seven outfits at a time, starting at $16 per month. They create a mix of seasonally appropriate clothes based on where you live, but if you need a particular type of clothing (rompers, for example), you can let Plum know and they promise to do their best to fill your request. You send the clothing back anytime you’d like within three months and Plum sends you a new bundle, which arrives freshly laundered using Seventh Generation products and packed with a little sachet of organic lavender to keep them smelling lovely.
Plum offers bundles of two, four or seven outfits at a time, starting at $16 per month.
All you parents out there knows that when you put a piece of clothing on a child the likelihood that child will spill something on said piece of clothing is very high. Plum understands this and will not charge you for it. Send the stained clothing back with the bundle and they will either donate them to foster care, or use the fabric that’s still in great shape in hand-crafted baby gifts.
Just like Netflix movies, your bundle of baby clothes are be packed in a returnable envelope. Just hold on to the reusable envelope, which is made of backpacking material to minimize waste, and use it to send the clothes back when you’re ready. One free round-trip (via USPS) is included in your subscription each month. If you’d like to return and receive new clothes more frequently, there is a $9.95 shipping charge. If, for some reason, you misplace something Plum charges a $30 per outfit fee.
top photo by Santheo, Creative Commons
Maggie
August 24, 2011
What a great idea, wish I had thought of it :))