Babies learn pricing lesson early

So when did September become, “Baby Month?” Apparently when Target and Walmart decided to promote it as such. Target this week featured an adorable infant on the cover of its circular with the headline, “oh baby, what a sale!” Last week, Walmart ran a four-page insert in Parade magazine that encouraged its customers to, “bring home the best for baby with Parent’s Choice.”

As is often the case, it was hard to tell which retailer had the better prices, due to the limited overlap of directly-comparable featured items, but there were a few instances where items appeared similar, and, in those cases, Target appeared to have the better price or offer a more compelling value. For example, Target offer Enfamil Premium formula in a special 28.1-ounce can that contained “20% more free” for $22.49, while Walmart offered a 23.4-ounce Enfamil Premium formula for $22.50. Target offered the Diaper Genie II Elite for $29.99, while Walmart offered a product identified as the Playtex Diaper Genie II Elite Pail for $39.50, but it was only available at Walmart.com. Target also appeared to beat Walmart’s price on an EvenFlo Chase Deluxe booster seat, however incomplete product information in the ads made it impossible for customers to know for sure without visiting both stores. The model Target featured for $49.99 was suitable for children weighting 30 to 100 pounds, whereas Walmart’s featured model at a Rollback price of $55 was rated for kids weighing 20 to 40 pounds. Walmart offered a better price on its Stork Craft 4-in-1 crib priced at $149 than Target did on its Delta 4-in-1 crib priced at $229.99, but Target also featured a 4-in-1 Graco brand convertible crib for $139.99 and with both of the cribs featured at Target, customers could receive a free Kolcraft brand mattress. In general, Target featured a broader and more extensive selection of merchandise, along with more pictures of babies.