FEATURED SUPPLIER ~ Small is Beautiful

A Small and Beautiful Story

As a voluntary be-friender of the UK charity SANDS (Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society), Sue Prentice had often been asked for clothing for very tiny babies weighing as little as 1-2lbs, but had been unable to find anything at all in the UK. This lack of clothing for tiny babies was quite ironic given that the UK has the highest rate of low birth weight in Western Europe. Premature baby charity BLISS defines a 'low birth weight baby' as weighing less than 5.5lbs, with a 'very low birth weight baby' weighing under 3.0lbs.

Low and very low birth weights in babies are most commonly associated with the baby being born prematurely, that is to say before a 37-week gestation period. Generally speaking, the earlier the baby is born before 37 weeks gestation, the lower the birth weight. According to the Department of Health Maternity statistics, in 2001-2002 the estimated number of births occurring between 22-36 weeks gestation was 32,200, which accounted for 4.81% of the total number of births in the UK.

It is therefore surprising that there is such short supply of premature baby clothes in the UK. Prompted by this gap in the market, Sue started to search the web in order to source specialist clothing from America, Australia, Holland and England. Sue used her research in locating the clothing to help many women who turned to her for help when needing premature baby clothes. Sue from Essex says, "Initially, I intended to supply just a small amount of clothing offering more of a service than a business".

However, the popularity of the service Sue was offering proved so popular that she took the decision to set up web based 'Small is Beautiful', a specialist supplier of premature baby wear.

Said Sue, "It became very clear early on that there is a real need for this specialist clothing, and I feel that all parents would like the choice of dressing their baby in lovely clothes that actually fit them properly."

Many mothers faced with the trauma of giving birth to a premature baby would agree wholeheartedly. Whilst hospitals play a fantastic part in nursing these babies back to a healthy survival weight (twenty years ago about 20% of babies weighing less than 2lbs 2oz at birth survived, nowadays the survival rate is approximately 80%), there is little time to think about the niceties of dressing a premature baby. Many hospitals provide 'library premature baby clothes' as often with a premature birth being unexpected, new mothers have little time to spend scouring the high street for suitable clothing. One mother we spoke to who has experienced a premature birth told us how she wanted to spend most of her free time with her daughter at the hospital. Joanne Crawley, mother of now healthy 11-month old Rachel, told Uniquely Woman, "The hospital was absolutely fantastic with everything and they provided me with some clothes for Rachel to wear as she was tiny at 4lbs 3oz at birth. However I really wanted to dress my beautiful new daughter in her own clothing but really didn't have the time or inclination to spend hours walking round the shops when my time was better spent being with Rachel."

Joanne went on to tell us that the Internet was a great help in obtaining premature baby clothes as she could shop late at night when she came home from the hospital. The concept of being able to obtain such clothing by mail order with a quick turnaround time is one that was adopted by Sue Prentice and her husband when setting up Small is Beautiful. Sue strongly believes that mothers of premature babies also need a personal and friendly service at this important time, and as a volunteer for specialist baby charities, Sue is perfect to provide support to her customers with a sympathetic ear. There is even a section on the Small is Beautiful website that offers advice on caring for a premature baby.

Said Sue, "We aim to provide an efficient service to our customers but are always on hand to offer advice and to help our customers at a difficult time. We also believe that just because we offer a specialist practical clothing service, this doesn't mean that there should be lack of choice for mothers wishing to dress their babies in beautiful clothing. We have what we believe to be possibly the widest choice and selection of clothes specially made for the premature baby on the British web. We are sourcing new stock regularly, from all over the world to bring parents and families in the UK a choice they have not had before."

To visit Small is Beautiful CLICK HERE