@rcalabrese Yo also a teacher on mat leave (10 week old baby) with a tender c-section scar. It’s still pricey but Sakura Bloom’s Scout is very similar and in stock with 20% off currently ( ‘springlove’ discount code).
The colours they have in stock currently (I assume their permanent collection) also go for less than retail on FB marketplace/groups. The official FB group is almost as bad as Happy Baby for bidding on limited edition colours though.
@immanuelsdottir Omgggg yes to all of this. There are a handful of people on their claiming EVERYTHING in seconds, and I think they have a flipping operation going on. It’s all just really gross but also entertaining?
@immanuelsdottir Just here to say this is SO TRUE. I realized this today when someone posted a post about encouraging to let other people who dont have a carrier at all get first dibs at restocks and not adding “another one to your stash” and oh the greed and outright rudeness of the comments. Super yuck. I wanna sell mine just to not be affiliate with this.
@immanuelsdottir Ugh I just fell down this rabbit hole the past two days with Happy Baby and Tula Baby. It's insane. Tula baby is a bit better and I was able to find one brand new under 100 bucks but the groups are crazy. It reminds me of those bamboo blanket and onesie groups my friend showed me before I even had a baby. These carriers are already severely out of budget for a large number of families and then to have people driving up the prices, the bidding, the collectors status. It all together makes it impossible for anyone to get them at a reasonable price.
@immanuelsdottir You're always welcome to post on the Happy Baby FB group what your budget is. If you're not picky about the color, you can get one for $90-$110 easily. Sometimes less. I got my first Happy Baby original for $90 shipped just a few months ago. There are so many nice people in that group that are willing to help a Mama out to get her started baby wearing. You have to be willing to ignore the people that treat it like a hobby.
We also have a local retailer within an hour drive, so we visited there to get one for my husband. This meant paying retail and again, just accepting whatever color they had in stock.
@boboc I’ve posted there twice in the past 2 weeks - first with a $100 budget (zero offers), then a $150 budget (remember retail is $150-170) and only got 2 offers of ‘play quality’ (stained and fraying) carriers. After paying shipping on top that’d be more than buying new which has shipping included.
People are polite, but it’s nonetheless less a horribly greedy/show-offy group. I think the business owners running such a group makes them look really awful personally!
@immanuelsdottir The group is crazy and I think the only reason I'm still in it is for entertainment purposes. I joined about 7 months ago and the market has totally changed since I joined. Only the rifle paper Co prints were selling above retail at that time. Almost everything else was selling from $100-$150 and you could get onbuhimos and play condition for less than $100.
It's been so annoying to see the prices drastically rise in such a short time on used carriers. It seems like some of the "top contributors" in that group really drive the prices up, especially when they are "DISO" () for some limited edition print and new people join, think it's normal, and buy for those too-high prices.
@immanuelsdottir Every brand has a showy-offy subculture. Little Sleepies. Kyte. Sakura Bloom. You name it, it exists. People are allowed to spend their money how they see fit, even if it's a crazy way to spend it.
I agree that right now, buying a Happy Baby is hard with their announcement of production issues. Stock is extremely low. Colors that will never be produced again are going to go for more, and yes, people are going to get into bidding wars over them.
I don't think that the group reflects negatively on the business owners. They moderate it to ensure bullying doesn't happen, but it's not their job to control the price of the resale market. People aren't being greedy if that's the nature of the market right now.
Keep watching the group. Check FB Marketplace. Keep your post bumped about your budget. And if you'd like help trying to score on the website when they restock here in a few weeks, feel free to reach out to me. I'm more than happy to help try to grab one for you at retail.
@boboc I joined the group a few days ago after reading this post. Tonight I bid on one and I won, but then the poster decided she wanted to keep it for sentimental reasons. Lol. Why even post it then?
@gazer That happened to me! I won an MMAO when I had just joined the group and thought I'd get one and move on with my life, and she counter offered at 125% of my bid. Um no?
@immanuelsdottir A quick FB marketplace search just now I found multiple ranging from 80-150$
It’s frustrating to not get them for super cheap but it’s nice when you want to sell them.
@immanuelsdottir I do see carriers available on their website tho! 145 for a yellow. Maybe the ones you saw were special? A lot of people do sell for 100-150 if you're not picky.
I didn't have a choice of colour when I got mine I had to pick what was left hahaha. But the comfort of the carrier was so much better than my ergo.
@immanuelsdottir Did I miss something?? I bought mine last year in June and stopped using it in November as it got too uncomfortable with my baby being bigger. I didn’t know they had gotten “huge”?
@sitapea Things have gotten crazy in the last couple months. If your carrier is the newer (thinner) strap style & if you’re willing to sell, please let me know! I have one that is older style but I’m trying to find one with thinner straps since they hang off my shoulders.
@immanuelsdottir If you’re patient and don’t care about what color you get, it is possible to find a good deal on that group! I recently bought a HB toddler that was in excellent condition for $90 from someone on there (they retail for about $170)!
@immanuelsdottir I have 3 HBCs. One from website. One from FB group at exact retail. One of Poshmark almost $240. Ouch. I debate leaving the group because I get so sad when I lose my very high bids (I can’t spend $280 on a used carrier lol) it’s great and I do love it but I also like my infantino fine
) for some limited edition print and new people join, think it's normal, and buy for those too-high prices.