Florence: Hello, and welcome to the Peralane wholesale podcast. I'm Florence. Today: baby clothes. Which newborn basics actually sell? And Oliver has a confession.
Oliver: I do. My sister had a baby last month. I bought the cutest little outfit. Newborn size.
Kaan: And the baby was big.
Oliver: Four point two kilos! It never fit. Not once. It went straight in a drawer.
Kaan: That is the whole lesson, really. Newborn size is up to about three point six kilos. Some babies are out of it in a few weeks. Some never go in.
Florence: So should a boutique even stock newborn size?
Kaan: A little, yes. Mostly inside gift sets. But the depth goes in zero-to-three months. That's where parents buy again... and again.
Florence: Okay, let's start at the beginning. What do new parents actually need?
Kaan: The NHS has a list. Six all-in-ones. Six vests. Two light cardigans. A shawl or blanket. Then a hat, mittens and socks.
Oliver: Six? Six vests? Babies need SIX vests?
Florence: Oliver. Have you met a baby?
Oliver: Erm... briefly. At the hospital. Right, right, they get through a lot.
Kaan: They do. And that's good news for a shop. Basics are bought in multiples. A pack of eight bodysuits is about one dollar fifty a piece wholesale. Parents buy them in sixes.
Florence: So bodysuits are the repeat item.
Kaan: Exactly. Not exciting. But they turn over faster than any statement piece.
Oliver: Okay, but my sister got loads of gifts. Like, from people who had no idea what size she-
Kaan: -what size she needed, yes. That's the other half of baby clothing. Gift buyers. In Türkiye we have something for them. We call it a hospital exit set. The outfit the baby goes home in.
Florence: Oh, like a going-home outfit?
Kaan: Yes, but complete. Five pieces: cardigan, footed trousers, hat, bib, mittens. Or ten pieces in muslin, with a swaddle and a little shirt. All one colour, all one fabric.
Oliver: Oh, that's a finished present. You don't have to add anything.
Kaan: And you can't get the size very wrong. Which, Oliver, matters for you.
Oliver: Fair. Very fair.
Florence: What do those sets cost wholesale?
Kaan: Our five-piece set is about seven sixty-seven a set. The ten-piece muslin set, about twelve dollars. And the muslin comes in seven colours, so sage, ecru, white... not only pink and blue.
Florence: Mm-hm. Neutral colours sell to people who don't know if it's a boy or a girl. Now, the serious bit. Safety. What should a boutique check?
Kaan: Cords first. Under the standard EN fourteen six eight two, no drawstrings around the head, neck or upper chest on clothes for young children. A bow on a baby set should be stitched down. Not a tie.
Oliver: Huh. I never thought about that.
Kaan: Then close knits, so little fingers don't catch. Buttons sewn on firmly. Snaps are easier anyway. And cotton or muslin next to the skin.
Florence: And ask the supplier for photos of the closures and the labels before you order. Let's make it real. Small first order. What does Oliver buy?
Kaan: Six packs of bodysuits, forty-eight pieces, about seventy-two dollars. Ten five-piece sets, about seventy-seven. Eight muslin sets in four colours, about ninety-six.
Oliver: That's... two hundred and forty-five dollars? For sixty-six things to sell?
Kaan: Plus shipping. Then you watch which colours go first. That's your reorder list.
Florence: Oliver. Final answer. What do you send your sister next time?
Oliver: A ten-piece muslin set. In sage. Size zero-to-three months. I've learned.
Florence: Perfect. The full guide, with the NHS list and the sample order, is on the Peralane blog. Thanks for listening.
The wholesale baby clothes that sell most steadily are the boring ones: bodysuits, all-in-ones, a light cardigan, a hat and mittens, and something soft to wrap the baby in. The NHS newborn list asks parents for roughly 6 all-in-ones, 6 vests and 2 cardigans, so a baby boutique sells these in multiples, again and again. Stock them deeper in 0-3 months than in newborn size, add coordinated sets that gift buyers can pick without knowing a size, and keep every piece free of cords around the neck.
Key takeaways
- Build the shelf around the NHS newborn list: all-in-ones, vests (bodysuits), cardigans, a shawl or blanket, hat, mittens and socks.
- Go deeper in 0-3 months than in newborn size. Babies outgrow newborn size fast, and many parents skip it.
- Coordinated 5-piece and 10-piece newborn sets sell to gift buyers who do not know the baby's size.
- Multi-packs of bodysuits are your repeat item: low price per piece, bought in sixes.
- Check every piece for cords, loose knits and small parts before you list it.
Start with what parents are told to buy. The NHS "What you'll need for your baby" page lists 6 stretch suits (all-in-ones) for day and night, 6 vests, 2 light wool or cotton cardigans, a shawl or blanket, and a hat, mittens and socks or bootees for going out. That list is your core range, because every new parent is shopping from some version of it.
Here is how the list turns into stock:
| What parents need | How many (NHS) | What to stock | How it usually comes wholesale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vests | 6 | Short and long-sleeve bodysuits with snap closures | Multi-packs of 3 to 8 |
| All-in-ones | 6 | Footed rompers and sleepsuits, front-opening | Packs or single styles |
| Cardigans | 2 | Light cotton or close-knit cardigans | Single pieces or inside sets |
| Shawl or blanket | 1 | Swaddles, muslin wraps, knitted blankets | Single pieces, one size |
| Hat, mittens, socks | 1 each | Cotton hats, scratch mittens, booties | Inside newborn sets, or small packs |
Two details on that NHS page are worth reading as a buyer. It says light layers are better than one heavy piece, which favours cotton and muslin over thick fleece. And it asks for close-knitted patterns rather than loose knits, so tiny fingers and toes do not get caught. Both are easy checks when you choose styles.
Newborn size is the smallest and the shortest-lived size, so keep it thin and put your depth in 0-3 months. The parenting site Bounty advises parents expecting a baby to buy mostly 0-3 month clothes, because newborn size can be outgrown very quickly. It also notes that gift givers tend to choose the smallest sizes, which fit for the shortest time.
The size ranges explain why. Primark's UK size guide puts newborn size at up to 3.6 kg and 54 cm, and 0-3 months at 3.6 to 5.7 kg. A baby can pass through the first band in a few weeks; the second one lasts longer.
What this means for your order:
Turkish wholesale catalogues sell baby basics in three formats, and each one fits a different buyer. Knowing them helps you plan the shelf rather than buying piece by piece.
Newborn sets (5 or 10 pieces). In Türkiye these are sold as "hospital exit" sets: the outfit a baby goes home in. In the UK you would call it a going-home outfit or a newborn gift set. A typical 5-piece set has a cardigan, footed trousers, a hat, a bib and mittens, which covers half of the NHS list in one coordinated pack. Our star-embroidered 5-piece newborn set is $7.67 per set in soft cotton knit, in brown, grey and navy.
Muslin sets. Crinkled cotton muslin is light and breathable, which fits the NHS advice on light layers. The 100% cotton muslin 10-piece set has a collared romper, footed trousers, a shirt, a cap, mittens, a square cloth and a large triangular swaddle for 0-3 months, at $12.05 per set. It comes in seven colours, so you can cover both pink-and-blue buyers and the parents who want sage, ecru or white.
Bodysuit multi-packs. This is the repeat item. A pack such as these girls' bodysuits for 3-18 months holds 8 cotton bodysuits with envelope necks and snap closures, at $1.50 per piece, $12.00 for the pack. Parents buy vests in sixes, so packs like this turn over faster than any statement piece.
If you are new to buying in packs, our guide on how much inventory to start a boutique explains how to plan an order in styles and packs instead of single sizes.
A large part of baby clothing is bought by people who are not the parents, so stock things a gift buyer can choose in ten seconds. The Grow Your Boutique guide to baby and children's boutiques describes newborn to 24 months as the bracket with the highest gift share and the fastest size turnover, and suggests leaning on gifts and accessories because they add sales without adding sizes.
For a gift buyer, a good baby item is:
Demand is steady. The ONS counted 594,677 live births in England and Wales in 2024, the first rise since 2021. Every one of those babies needs the same basic list, and most of them get gifts.
Baby clothes carry stricter rules than adult clothes, and the rule that catches most sellers is cords. The UK safety regulator's risk assessment on cords and drawstrings explains that under EN 14682, clothing for young children must not have drawstrings or functional cords in the head, neck or upper chest area, and that decorative cords there must stay short and must not tie across the throat.
Before you list a baby piece, check:
Ask your supplier for photos of closures and labels before you order. Our checklist for vetting a wholesale clothing supplier covers the questions to send.
A first baby basics order can be small. Here is one way to spend about $250 on product, using the prices above; shipping and duties come on top.
| What | Quantity | Price | Approx. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodysuit packs (8 per pack, 3-18 months) | 6 packs, 48 bodysuits | $12.00 per pack | $72 |
| 5-piece newborn sets | 10 sets across 3 colours | $7.67 per set | $77 |
| 10-piece muslin sets (0-3 months) | 8 sets across 4 colours | $12.05 per set | $96 |
| Total | 66 items to sell | about $245 |
Sell the bodysuits in sixes or threes, and the sets as gifts. Watch which colours of the sets go first: that is your reorder list. Keep part of your budget back so you can buy the winners again, the same way you would for any first drop.
Basics sell most steadily: bodysuits, all-in-ones and light cardigans, the items on the NHS newborn list that parents buy in multiples. Coordinated newborn sets sell well as gifts, because buyers can pick one without knowing the size. Statement pieces and occasion outfits sell less often, so keep them as a small part of the shelf.
Stock both, but go deeper in 0-3 months. Newborn size covers babies up to about 3.6 kg and many babies outgrow it in weeks, so parenting advice tells parents to buy mostly 0-3 months. Keep newborn size mainly inside gift sets, where the exact fit matters less to the buyer.
It is the Turkish name for a newborn going-home set: a coordinated set of 5 or 10 pieces in the same fabric and colour. A 5-piece set usually has a cardigan, footed trousers, hat, bib and mittens; a 10-piece set adds items such as a shirt, a cloth and a swaddle. UK boutiques can sell them as newborn gift sets.
On Peralane, baby bodysuits in multi-packs start at about $1.50 per piece, 5-piece newborn sets at about $7.67 per set, and 10-piece muslin sets at about $12 per set. Prices are per piece or per set before shipping and duties. Check each product page for the pack size and the colours available.
Yes. Children's clothing must follow product safety rules, and the standard most sellers meet first is EN 14682 on cords and drawstrings: no drawstrings or functional cords around the head, neck or upper chest of clothes for young children. Also check that small parts are sewn on firmly and that each piece is labelled for size and fibre.
Planning your baby shelf? Browse newborn sets, muslin and bodysuit packs in the Peralane kids wholesale range, with prices per piece and the colours shown on every product page.
