Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Where to shop for baby clothes in Jakarta

What makes shopping for kids so much fun is not only the adorable stuff available,but also no bothering about the size (unlike shopping for my clothes, which I hate!), in case you're unsure, pick a size larger, if not now, he'll wear it a few months from now! Jakarta is several times more expensive than Bombay and although the malls are nasty and drool worthy, the price tags are sure make your eyes roll! 

So the kiddie shops in swanky malls may be for the ultra-fashionable-skinny-stilletoed-Richie-Rich-mommys, but for me they reserve a special visit every few months during Sale only. 

I honestly think a tee or pair of shorts should cost less than 50,000 rupiah / Rs 250/ $5 as a baby’s entire wardrobe changes literally every few months. Also what's more important than buying expensive clothes is not fussing over food stains or mud stains and simply letting a child be a child! 




So if you want cute + reasonably priced stuff for your tiny tot, here are few places where you could give a try:


(i) The swanky malls (Grand Indonesia, Plaza Indonesia, Pacific Place, Senayan City etc) *During Sale* I once picked up 5 pretty neat Baby Gap tees for under $5 each (like in the above pic)! So always keep a watch for the Sale sign. The good news is that it happens often and during festivals (Ramadan, Christmas) they go on for more than a month each.

(ii) ITC & Ambassador malls, Kuningan: here I've found the following categories of shops catering to kids:

Baby shops: selling everything baby related : toiletries, slings, clothes, strollers, high chairs, pacifiers, socks, blankets etc. These serve the purpose of my kids night wear. I've always picked up full sleeved tees & jammies in nice pastel shades from here for probably 16,000 rupiah / Rs 90/ $2 for each item. Here I have also bought his high chair, my Medela Breast Pump (parts too), toilet top for potty training etc.

Factory outlets: selling some known brands for cheap: here I buy my kids outdoor shorts. Limited colors, but the greys and blues for 40,000 rupiah/ Rs 200/ $4 team well with most tees and are perfect for playgrounds. Sometimes I pick up a tee or two too.

Speciality shops for swimming gear: a fancy pair of swimming trunks in Mothercare would perhaps cost 250,000 rupiah/ Rs 1,400/ $30 for a mere 6 month use, but you can pick a cheap pair here.

Shoes shops: buying shoes for my kid is a nightmare, cuz there's always something that goes wrong. I make sure he comes along when I shop, but either he ends up losing a shoe, or turns out the shoe easily comes off when he runs, or he simply outgrows a pair before we realise it. So I stick to shoes that cost under 100,000 rupiah/ Rs 500/ $10 which you can find here.

Fancy dress shop: Your child's invited to a fancy dress bday party? avoid Mothercare/ELC! Theres one shop here we found after a lot of searching but ended up NOT buying the Cowboy outfit intended, as my son refused to try it on!

Football Jerseys: When our 1 yo was invited to his pals birthday party with the Jersey dress code, the smallest Arsenal jersey we found was a 2 yo size, looked pretty smart once we tucked it in!

Cool Mothercare shoes for $35/ Rs 1,500


Note: I'm not against Mothercare! I love that I can buy Zoggs swimming training tube, organic flouride free toothpaste or Baby Blanket sun block, i.e.; things I find nowhere else! I just think its not worth spending the monies on clothes :)

(iii) Factory Outlets. Most big brands are actually produced in Vietnam or Sri Lanka or Indonesia. So "FOs" are big business here! Bandung, a cosy weekend-gateway-kind-of-small-city is 2-3 hours away from Jakarta and has a string of these on Dago street. So if you're interested, you can pop by for a day or two, and submerge yourself in shopping (and food!). 

My husband is yet to find a decent tee that lasts more than a single wash (most likely fakes instead of export runovers) and shopping for me is restricted to shorts but for baby it's perfect! I've picked the most adorable, good quality & tees, shorts and jackets! And if you don't wanna make a trip, you could pop by Blossom's branch (one of the better FOs) right here at SCBD in Jakarta itself. 

And like I've mentioned in point (ii), there are a few small FOs in ITC / Ambassador mall too.


Well of course , if you don't worry about budget or wanna splurge on a party dress or two, the swanky malls (with at least a floor dedicated to baby gear) will definitely make your dreams come true.

Read More: Nannies in Jakarta (& How we couldn't have survived without one!) 

Until later! Stay in touch!

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3 comments:

  1. Hi,I came across your post while searching for FOs for baby clothes. You have provided good information! Thanks! Btw, i'm also from Bombay and currently living in Jakarta :)

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    Replies
    1. Glad I could be of help! enjoy your stay in the big Durian :)

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  2. This is such an amazing site! I really enjoyed reading the content. Thanks!

    Kids Clothes

    ReplyDelete