How To Shop For A Stroller

Have you ever been car shopping? How did you like it? If you are like me and get frustrated easily with sales people. Then this article is for you.

Wouldn’t it be nice to go to a store, tell the sales person exactly what you are looking for and walk out with the perfect match.

A stroller just for you. Equipped with all the bells and whistles like cruise control, back up camera, valet mode.

Yes, I say yes it would be great! Sign me up for this right now.

Sorry that’s only a dream, especially if you are a new Parent to be.

 

Here are some of our experiences shopping for a Stroller

 

The What The Where The When and The How.

Before heading out or online to begin this adventure, we must first figure out what  type of stroller is needed.

This choice is going to be based on a few things in no particular order.

• Type of stroller
• Budget
• Already have a toddler? (or planning for a second one fairly soon)
• Lifestyle

TYPES OF STROLLERS

 

Lightweight – For those that don’t want a full-size stroller and something that’s easy fold. Usually 4 wheels.

You definitely wouldn’t take this one jogging or on dirt roads though. Check out this Amazon best seller. Here.

 

Jogger – Name pretty much says it all. Usually a 3 wheeler with bigger more aggressive tires. Joggers also come in different sizes.

you can also get a jogger hybrid travel system which sound good but we found you were always sacrificing something with these.

 

Travel System – The one stop shop option. Some come with car seat bassinet and stroller or just car seat and stroller etc. If you don’t have the patience or just don’t want to bother with making this and adventure this can be a good option. Both for time and your wallet. We chose the Peg Perego Book Pop-Up Review here.

Full Size – The more traditional choice, going with this choice you have more option to mix and match if you so choose.

A lot of these units you can change the tires, therefore eliminating the need for a separate jogger. Note* make sure front wheels lock if you are planning to use on gravel. wheel composition also makes a difference for longevity.

 

BUDGET

As they say “Money talks”.

(How much you have set aside for the purchase. Strollers can cost between $150.00 to $1500.00)

Its important you stay within your means remember this is only one of the many purchases you will have to make during this journey of parent hood.

So yes forget about the Jones, or smiths. Do you!

Blah blah blah be smart with your money yadah, yadah,

What I want to know is where do we go from here?

OK! so we’ve done all the research. We want A stroller with:

• 4 wheels
• folds easily
• fairly light
• has a peak window
• good price
• neutral color

Great we are ready to go shopping. Where do we go from here?

We could go to Wal-Mart!  A good place to start go if you already know what you want and not looking for a high-end stroller.

You won’t have a sales person coming up to you offering advise on the products here. The stroller were on a highshelf and one location and the wheels removed and models locked at another. No hands on experience here.

Walmart was OK. What else is there?

We’ve never bought a stroller before and  want to compare prices and quality.

How about  out Babies R US?

Associates here know where you can find things and the general information but ask them how to fold unit or what other brand makes a comparable unit. Um… but the name of the store is Babies R US they should be experts no?

Nope! but they do have a good selection and great sales. You will find some exclusive units here as well.  You will find medium to high-end units here.

and semi-helpful associates.

 

Buy Buy Baby, I keep hearing about this place. Worth a visit I guess.

First impression, Very knowledgeable staff, we didn’t have to go looking for someone to help us they were coming up to us.

This store has a lot of options low end to high-end a lot of selection.

very hands on here no problem taking the stroller around the store to test it out.

We did find that the sales associates were always pushing a particular brand though. Interesting? hmmm

 

Boutique Store

I first off, let me tell you not all Boutique stores are made equal. We went to 3 different ones and the all offered varying levels of service.

There was one in particular that was a cut about the rest. All of these stores offer full service, like installing the car seat for you etc.

There were no courtesy spared here. Policies are more tight here as far as returns and registry but its well worth it.

We  were offered our very own consultant who followed up with us and remembered us right away when we when back in.

knowledge here is amazing. Even if you don’t plan on buying from a boutique store its worth the visit.

 

OK so you’ve visited a few stores and your set in what stroller you want because you soaked up as much knowledge as possible from

all the different associates. There is one more thing left to do before you make this purchase if you haven’t already done so.

 

Check online! 

One important thing to make sure you check for online when purchasing a stroller or car seat is that it meets the safety requirements of the particular country you are in.

For instance one feature maybe available in the USA but deleted on the Canadian model. Its very important that when you are looking at pictures and researching in stores that you check all features.

Another thing that applies to this whole purchase is service and support. Don’t be afraid to contact the supplier or manufacture and scope out their level of consumer support in your Country.

We found out after making a purchase that the support wasn’t that good and no spare parts were available for the model we got. Best to know before you purchase.

Last but no least. Do forget to ask other parents in your community. There is a wealth of information out there that you can get from people you interact with on a daily basis.

 

Good Luck! Happy Shopping!