starting a baby gemach--feedback please

mummiedearest

Tue, Sep 08 2009, 10:23 pm

hello out there.

I am starting a baby gemach. due to limited storage space, I would like to find out what people want out of a baby gemach. I wanted to focus more on baby gear items that people may not want to buy, for financial or other reasons.

this is not a loan gemach, I am giving things away. I only ask that those who take things continue to pass them along whenever they're done with the item(s).

so far I have a crib mattress to give away, three baby outfits and two blankets. I'd like to steer away from too much clothing.

so I was thinking of stocking things like

highchairs, baby gyms, swings/bouncers, boosters, carseats, strollers.

if I ever thought I'd have space, I'd even stock cribs.
I'm going to do a lot of bargain hunting and see if I can get some used, some new.
so I'd like to know what you all think would be the most popular gemach item. what would you be most likely to take from a gemach?

elmos

Tue, Sep 08 2009, 10:36 pm

I think people would take swings bouncers even riding toys as kids outgrow some of these fast. highchairs and boosters are another great thing and pac-n-plays in my neighborhood seem to be a popular thing people borrow also.
Hatzlocha

Twizzlers

Tue, Sep 08 2009, 10:38 pm

its so kind of you to do such a thing. what I would have wanted to get from a gemach were the items that I needed for a short period of time and couldnt justify buying. Like I bought a pack n play with a bassinet attachment, and my kid outgrew the weight limit in like a month. I would have loved to get a bassinet from a gemach rather than paying all that money for the bassinet option that didnt last too long.

mummiedearest

Tue, Sep 08 2009, 10:40 pm

oh, my, I forgot about bassinets. thanks, twiz. do you think a regular bassinet would be more in demand than the pac n play bassinet option? pac n plays would store more compactly. do people generally use bassinets for more than a few months?

ra_mom

Tue, Sep 08 2009, 10:43 pm

Hatzlacha mummiedearest!
Sometimes big "furniture" Gemach's just act as "Shadchanim". They don't actually stock the items, but match up the people who are giving away, to people who need. (Like the Sukkah Gemach.)
Just a thought... if you ever get really big, there's another option out there.
Tizku LiMitzvos!!

mummiedearest

Tue, Sep 08 2009, 10:50 pm

ra_mom wrote:

thanks for the idea. I do have some space, so I'd like to fill that and keep the inventory moving. but should I ever get that much "business," I'll be sure to start a website that does just that.

Mama Bear

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 12:09 am

I wanted to ask tongue in cheek what a baby gmach is, do you loan out babies? Very Happy

(by the day... by the hour... to be babysat, cuddled, shopped with, have the house wrecked so you have an excuse for your dh why the house looks like this... lol)

bnm

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 12:21 am

Mama Bear wrote:

I wanted to ask tongue in cheek what a baby gmach is, do you loan out babies? Very Happy

(by the day... by the hour... to be babysat, cuddled, shopped with, have the house wrecked so you have an excuse for your dh why the house looks like this... lol)

2 more categories- to be shopped for (when I was pregnant I would have loved to have someone to buy all the baby stuff I was drooling on) and to borrow when stroller shopping to try out different size kids in the cariage.

Mrs Bissli

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 7:49 am

It's helpful to stock up things when you have guests with a baby, like porta-crib, baby bath, high chair. And baby-proofing things for the house. I've been asked by many grandparents if we have one we don't use anymore when their grandchildren are visiting.

Also something you use only once or twice, like fancy outfit for the babynaming and the pretty pillows for the bris.

NotInNJMommy

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 7:50 am

Mama Bear wrote:

I wanted to ask tongue in cheek what a baby gmach is, do you loan out babies? Very Happy

(by the day... by the hour... to be babysat, cuddled, shopped with, have the house wrecked so you have an excuse for your dh why the house looks like this... lol)

I also had this thought go across my mind...

su7kids

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 8:46 am

Bath tubs, too.

As a grandparent who is going to have to find a stroller and two more porta cribs or pack and plays for Tishrei, a place to be able to loan it and give it back to move it on afterwards would be perfect. Of course, I'm in California, but I'm talking about the idea.

Twizzlers

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 1:14 pm

I found the pack n play bassinet idea to be a dud. yes, we still use the pack n play and love the compactness, but the bassinet part is really just a piece of cardboard covered in padding and material, and since I put my baby in it when he was about 5 lbs over the limit, the board bent and now is unusable for any future kids.

mummiedearest

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 3:58 pm

bathtubs, right. that would be doable. I love inflatable tubs, and they store compactly!

and yes, I'd be willing to loan short term, but if someone wants it for a few months I won't keep track. if they want to donate it back, no problem here.

and for those of you who want to donate their children, sorry, I don't want to cook that much food. find another gemach Smile

Atali

Wed, Sep 09 2009, 11:42 pm

Bath seats for use in a regular tub
Those carseats that convert to strollers for traveling
Nursery decorations and bedding sets
Boppy pillows
Nursing cover-ups
Baby boy suits for chassunas, etc.

Also, make sure to check the expiration dates on car seats and don't take expired ones. You could also probably take regular cribs and store the other items inside them until someone wants one. It takes up less space that way