Skip cheap and breakable baby and kid gear, and instead, go for durable and solid. Not only is this smarter shopping, but it's better for the environment too.
Right now 82% of Americans buy and sell secondhand goods and this trend is not slowing down. After all, 57-percent of parents prefer to recycle and reuse products they’re no longer using, rather than throwing them away. Parents can join this movement by shopping secondhand for toys, strollers, walkers, carriers, bikes, furniture and more.
When starting your secondhand journey shop for durable gently-used products that are built to last. Here’s why shopping for durable gear is important, and what items our gear experts recommend.
Why Shop For Durable Products
Shopping for gently used and open box gear significantly decreases your costs. When parents shop with GoodBuy Gear, they save on average fifty-percent off traditional retail. And, because the value remains consistent and the product is built to last, it's easy to resell the item when you're done with it.
Purchasing secondhand enables parents to afford the top brands for less. While it might seem like that generic stroller online is just as good as another, reputed brand, chances are it's not made as well. So, while you might be saving $100, it won't survive multiple kids (and sometimes not even one child) or have any value beyond the short years you use it.
Instead, shop for gear that will last. For example, take the UPPAbaby Vista stroller system. New it retails for close to $1,000. GoodBuy Gear has gently-used and open-box options for $429.99. As the stroller ages the value does go down, but for something as durable as a Vista, it doesn’t depreciate much. Use that stroller for three to five years, and then resell it for around $400. Not only could you end up paying under $100 for multiple years of using one of the top strollers, but someone else benefits from the gear and it doesn’t end up in the landfill.
The Environmental Impact
The environmental impact of buying used instead of new is powerful. For starters, when shopping secondhand the carbon footprint of the item is reduced by 82-percent. This carbon footprint lowers even more when the baby and kid gear is passed down through multiple hands, something that can only happen if the product is durable enough to begin with.
Over $1.5 billion in perfectly good baby and kid gear gets destroyed every year in the United States, a real waste when it can be so easy to sell. That number is exasperated by the sheer amount of cheap kid stuff too, meaning toys that break right away, baby items that can’t handle years of use and disposable kid gear.
Best Durable Baby Gear
One of the best things about very small babies is that they don't abuse their gear. It's easy to get a gently-used swing or bouncer that looks like it was never used. And, when you buy durable items that have a high-resale value, then you're also getting more bang for the buck.
Take the Osprey Poco Plus Hiking Backpack. This pack can last a decade and the model barely changes. This item retails for around $330. Gently used it's closer to $150, and if you sell it back through GoodBuy Gear you receive 70-percent of the sale price. In this case that means about $105. Hence, you have two or three years of hiking with your kid and only spent $45 on one of the best packs around.
Other items that are both durable and have great reviews include the Dreambaby Mayfair 3-in-1 Play-Pen Gate, WeeSprout Wooden Highchair, Halo Bassinest Sleeper and Baby Bjorn Bouncer, to name a few. With these items the name helps sell quality, that, and tons of testing by parents and their infants. Metal baby gates are also something that hold up well and can last.
Toys Worth Investing In
Wooden toys are always a great investment. Not only do the best Montessori toys last, but often these items remain timeless too. Plus, wooden toys are in demand for Montessori families and those looking to lower the amount of blinking, loud plastic toys in the playroom. Top brands include Melissa & Doug, Hape and Plan Toys, to name a few.
For younger kids, invest in a wooden activity cube such as one by Alex Jr., or Lovevery Wooden Stacking Rings. Older kids love blasting off with the Pidoko Kids Wooden Space Ship Playset, a wooden dollhouse or a pretend play market stand.
Blocks of any kind are durable too. Including wooden blocks, magnetic stacking toys, robots and blocs and Mega Bloks. Also, LEGOs fit into this category, the only loss this toy faces is when mom and dad step on the sharp plastic brick and in a fit of rage throw them into the donation bin.
As for durable plastic toys, Green Toys is a great brand to invest in. Not only are the items made from recycled plastic, but the simple trucks, blocks, planes and boats can stand any toddler throwing them, the bathtub, outdoor play and gently chewing.
Durable Kid Items
Toys aside, it's smart to choose durable gear for older kids too, even if they are rougher on things than babies are. To start with, bikes. A cheap bike tends to scuff, have poor tires and often sports plastic pieces that break off. Choose a solid bike that can be passed down from kid to kid, and then sold. The same method applies to a trike, such as the Joovy Tricycoo. Or a scooter like the Larktale Scoobi 5-in-1, which is not only a quality item, but grows with your kid.
Time and time again, all these items have proven they will last, not only for your kids, but for kids down the line. Save money, save the planet, and shop for durable, second-hand kid and baby gear.
Explore GoodBuy Gear’s collection of durable products which are made to last. It’s better for your wallet and the planet.
