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nupe
01-29-2004, 11:38 AM
I was not planning to register, but several co-workers and friends have encouraged me to register. The next question is where.. I am interested in learning about "friendly" registry places. I searched the message board regarding this topic, the most recent posting is more than a year old.

The names I have come across include Babies R Us, Target, Baby Center, Baby Catalog, Pottery Barn Kids and Lands' End. If any of you have registered at these places (or others) what has your experience been? On-line and in-store? At the time of regsistry, and with returns.

Am not sure if I am posting to the correct category, if not, please feel free to move this question tot he appropriate category.

Thank you!

sntm
01-29-2004, 01:20 PM
good question!

target has been a problem for some people because they won't take returns without a receipt (and few people give you gifts with receipts)

i registered at babycenter, babystyle and babiesrus. my favorite of them was babycenter. it seemed to be the most user-friendly and the prices are good. babystyle has cute clothes but most of the other things are overpriced. they have a catalog, though, so good for relatives who aren't computer savvy. babiesrus didn't carry a lot of the better brands but was good for basics and because it was a B&M store, people who like to shop in person will use it. a warning though, if they buy things online, you can't return to B&M store unless they carry it also.

regardless, most people will buy whatever they want and ignore your registries!


shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

jamsmu
01-30-2004, 10:23 PM
I registered at BRU and PBK. I highly recommend BRU. People seem to know to check there, plus doing your registry in person is great because you can see everything, hold it, etc. We found a manager who took us around the store and explained the items. He also gave us personal opinion and customer opinion. Since BRU is huge, it can be overwhelming. Prepare for at least 3 hours, bring your BB book, and plan to return to make changes, or do it online.

As for PBK, their registry is easy and you will need to do it instore, wait 4 days, then add to it online b/c there are many items only carried in one of the places. The bonus is after your due date, you'll get a letter in the mail which offers 10% off everything left on your registry. As a former PBK employee, I always told my customers 2 things. 1. Register for EVERYTHING--no matter how silly. You can always return it and its the only chance you really get to ask for things. 2. If you LOVE a pattern, register for it, but also buy it as you register. Things go out of season there every 3-6 months. So if you really want it, you need to buy it, otherwise you stand a chance of not getting it when the baby is born. Then, when you do get it at your shower or as a gift (yea!) you have a receipt so you can take back the originals at a better price. (it will only be on the shelf for a few weeks before it goes on sale.)

Good luck!

Julie

esianoyam3
02-03-2004, 04:50 PM
I registered at BRU. I liked being able to see everything before I registered for it. We had no problems with returns/exchanges, even without a gift receipt.

I think people are more responsive to a store registry than they are to just an online registry (such as Babycenter.com). Most of the people I know would prefer to purchase the gift at a store rather than online.

nupe
02-04-2004, 01:20 PM
Thanks for sharing your experiences. I have not been to my local BRU yet, but I will be making the trip soon. I have been to my local PBK, but I suspect that the catalog has many more items than the store--I don't think that necessarily presents a problem though. However, I am somewhat hesitant to register through web sites for B&M stores that are not in my area. Not yet sure about registering through web sites that are web only (no B&M store). It would be nice if Land's End had a regsitry service.

As for gift givers, I agree that folks like to see things that they are buying, and also that folks like to present the actual gift at showers rather than a card stating what has been ordered. Overall, I would rather folks gifted items that make them happy rather than having them try to adhere to a registry list anyway. I know some folks prefer to purchase from registries for gifts--I know that I am definitely in this category.

Nupe