George at Asda

Launches first supermarket range of premature baby clothing

In partnership with Tommy’s 

The New Premature Clothing collection at George at Asda

George at Asda have launched the first supermarket range of premature baby clothing in partnership with the baby charity Tommy’s. The new range will be the most affordable on the high street and 10% from the sale of each garment will be donated to Tommy’s to fund research and support families with premature babies.

The new range will cater for babies who are born weighing anything from just 1lbs to 5lbs. It has been in development for over a year alongside Tommy’s midwives to ensure it meets the care needs of the 60,000 premature babies born in the UK every year.

A new survey commissioned by George and Tommy’s* found that 80% of parents who experienced a premature delivery found buying clothing to fit their baby a significant challenge. 90% said that there is not enough, premature baby clothing available on the high street and a further 87% had no idea where to shop for premature baby clothing.

The survey revealed 45% of parents’ stress levels were increased as they struggled to find clothing to fit their new baby. A quarter had also been forced to travel long distances away from the hospital to find suitable clothes when they could have been at their baby’s side.

George’s premature baby range will launch today and be stocked in 70 Asda stores nationwide, specifically pin-pointed in stores that are within a short distance of the nation’s specialist neonatal hospitals. The range will also be available for next day delivery and click and collect on George.com so parents can spend minimum time worrying about clothing and maximum time with their new baby.

George and Tommy’s have worked with mums and babies to ensure a perfect and comfortable fit around medical equipment. Of those surveyed, 55% worried that clothing would interfere with the medical equipment supporting their baby. George’s range includes special features such as a flat open-out fitting, extra poppers and irritation free seams to ensure clothing is comfortable and easy to secure around medical equipment.

Finding clothes to fit their baby is not the only concern to parents with 60% agreeing that premature baby clothing is too expensive. With 50% of twins born prematurely in the UK every year, investing in specialist clothing can put financial strain on parents at what is already a tough time. George’s range starts at just £5 for three Bodysuits, up to 860% cheaper than the price of similar garments sold at retailers including Mamas & Papas and John Lewis**.

In its continued commitment to providing the very best products for babies and supporting mums, George will be launching a brand new range of luxury baby clothing specifically for those with sensitive skin which uses the revolutionary Dreamskin technology and will be the first high street range of its kind to market.

The range has been applied with a special polymer widely used in the medical and cosmetic industry to help babies who have particularly sensitive, dry or irritable skin, suffer with eczema or dribble rash.

The Dreamskin polymer manages and controls the skin’s moisture levels, leaving it in the best possible condition; soft, supple and smooth. The collection will be available exclusively at selected George stores and George.com from the 10^th March and prices start from just £5.

Brand director for George, Fiona Lambert said:

“When we first visited St. Thomas’ hospital to speak to midwives and hold focus groups it became clear quite quickly that parents of premature babies struggle to find suitable and affordable clothing. Our new range is full of beautiful designs and has been specifically created around the needs of premature babies so parents can rest assured that they are giving their baby the very best from a brand they trust.” 

Emma-Lees Laing, Midwifery Manager at Tommy’s said:

“Premature babies can spend many weeks in hospital being cared for by medical staff, and often dressing their baby is one of the few ways that parents can care for their newborn. However, getting clothes to fit a 3lb baby is a real struggle and often parents are reliant on hospital gowns or nothing at all. This new affordable range means that parents will be able to choose clothes for their children in the same way as other parents, dress them in clothes, personal to them, and start the journey of daily care for their baby.”

Heidi Livesey, an ambulance driver from Nottinghamshire gave birth to her daughter Ebony at 26 weeks weighing just 1lbs 1oz said:

“Ebony didn’t have clothes for at least months, partly because of all the tubes and wires, but also because everything was just too big for her. My mum made clothes specially to fit her, and I was also lucky enough to have friends that knitted hats for her. Affordable clothing for premature babies means parents will have one less thing to worry about and will solve the problem of being able to clothe your baby properly during their first vulnerable months of life.”

Annette Briley, Tommy’s research midwife at St Thomas’ Hospital London said:

“Every parent loves the process of choosing pink clothes for a girl or blue clothes for their boy, and with babies that are born very early and are not yet fully developed, the sense of identity that clothes can bring is even more important. It’s great to see cute, colourful clothes for premature babies that are both affordable and widely available.”

Disclaimer: The information above has been supplied by Asda.

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