Baby Bunting
Baby Bunting is an Australian specialty retailer of baby and children's products, with stores and online operations in Australia and New Zealand.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Baby Bunting is an Australian specialty retail chain focused on products for babies, young children and their parents. Founded in Melbourne in 1979, the business developed from a local baby-goods retailer into one of Australia's largest specialist infant-products retailers. Its range spans practical equipment and consumables as well as clothing, toys and other products used during pregnancy, infancy and early childhood. The retailer's store network has historically been concentrated in Australia, particularly along the country's eastern seaboard, where population density and the concentration of major metropolitan markets support large-format specialty stores. Baby Bunting combines physical retailing with online sales and has sought to offer parents a broad assortment in one destination. Its product mix includes child car seats and other safety equipment, nursery items, baby clothing, toys and related children's merchandise. Practical categories, especially car seats and other essential equipment, are important because they address immediate household needs rather than discretionary gifting alone. Baby Bunting reached a significant scale milestone in August 2022, when it reported that sales had exceeded A$500 million for the first time. At that point, the company had 65 Australian stores and announced plans to enter New Zealand. The New Zealand expansion represented a move beyond its established Australian base and was intended to extend the brand's specialty-retail model into another nearby English-speaking market. The company subsequently operated stores in both countries, with four New Zealand locations referenced in the available material. The business faced more difficult trading conditions during 2023. Rising living costs changed household purchasing priorities, leading parents to focus more heavily on necessary products such as car seats and to reduce spending on toys and other non-essential items. At the same time, the company experienced pressure on profit margins. Baby Bunting reported a 67 percent fall in profit and announced that chief executive Matt Spencer would leave the role. In May 2023, Mark Teperson, previously chief executive of Afterpay, was announced as his successor. Further pressure followed when the company described sales during an important promotional period as unprecedentedly low, contributing to another decline in its share price in June 2023. In August 2023, Baby Bunting launched an online marketplace. The initiative broadened the assortment available through the company's digital channel and was intended to let customers access more baby products from a single site. It also reflected the wider strategic importance of online retail and assortment expansion as specialist retailers respond to changing consumer behaviour and cost-of-living pressure. Baby Bunting's positioning is therefore based on specialist expertise, breadth of range and convenience for families preparing for or raising young children. Unlike a general department store, it concentrates on a defined life stage and can combine products, advice and category-specific services around that customer need. Its current identity is that of a publicly visible Australian-origin baby-goods retailer expanding regionally while managing the effects of inflation, reduced discretionary spending and changing retail economics.
History
Baby Bunting was established in Melbourne in 1979 as a retailer focused on the needs of babies, young children and their parents. Over time, it expanded from its original Australian base into a substantial specialty retail chain. The company's model centred on bringing together a broad range of infant and children's merchandise, including clothing, toys, nursery products and practical equipment such as car seats. Its Australian store footprint became especially associated with the eastern coast, where the major population centres provided the principal market for specialist baby retail. By August 2022, Baby Bunting had reached a scale at which it reported sales of more than A$500 million for the first time. It had 65 stores in Australia and announced an intention to open its first store in New Zealand. The proposed expansion marked an important geographic step for an Australian retailer whose operations had previously been concentrated in its home market. The available reference material later identifies four New Zealand stores, indicating that the brand established a presence there in addition to its established Australian network. The period of expansion coincided with pressure on profitability. In early 2023, the Australian cost-of-living environment changed the way many parents allocated household spending. Customers continued to require products such as car seats and other practical items, but were more cautious about toys and other non-essential purchases. This shift in category mix, together with broader inflationary pressure, contributed to a 67 percent reduction in reported profit and a squeeze on margins. The financial and trading pressure also brought a leadership transition. Matt Spencer, who was chief executive during the 2023 downturn, was reported to be stepping down. On 23 May 2023, Baby Bunting announced Mark Teperson as his replacement. Teperson had previously served as chief executive of Afterpay, bringing experience from a major Australian technology and payments business into the specialist retail sector. Trading conditions remained challenging later in 2023. Baby Bunting reported unprecedentedly low sales during an important promotional period, and the company's share price fell further after the disclosure. The episode illustrated the sensitivity of the retailer's performance to consumer confidence, promotional timing and the balance between essential and discretionary baby products. In August 2023, the company responded in part by launching an online marketplace. The marketplace was designed to increase the selection offered through Baby Bunting's digital channel and make more baby products available on one site. This move extended the company's retail proposition beyond its directly presented store assortment and reflected the growing role of e-commerce in specialist retail. Baby Bunting's development can therefore be understood as a progression from a Melbourne-founded baby-products store to a large Australian specialty chain with a New Zealand presence and an expanding digital proposition. Its history combines geographic growth and assortment breadth with the more recent challenges of inflation, margin compression, weaker discretionary demand and executive change.
- 2023
Profit falls amid inflationary pressure
[1]The retailer reported a 67 percent decline in profit as rising living costs shifted customers toward essential products and away from discretionary categories.
- 2023
Chief executive transition
[1]Matt Spencer stepped down as chief executive and Mark Teperson was announced as his successor on 23 May.
- 2023
Online marketplace launched
[1]Baby Bunting launched an online marketplace to broaden its digital product assortment.
- 2022
Sales exceed A$500 million
[1]Baby Bunting announced that sales had passed A$500 million for the first time and reported 65 Australian stores.
- 2022
New Zealand expansion announced
[1]The company announced plans to open its first New Zealand store, beginning its expansion beyond Australia.
- 1979
Baby Bunting founded in Melbourne
[1]The baby and children's specialty retailer was founded in Melbourne, Australia.
Products and positioning
A specialist one-stop retailer for expectant parents, babies and young children, combining broad product selection with practical categories such as car seats, nursery equipment and baby care.
Child safety
Child car seats
Child car seats are among Baby Bunting's most important practical product categories. They serve an essential safety need for families transporting infants and children and remained a priority for customers during the 2023 cost-of-living squeeze, when discretionary spending on toys and other non-essential goods weakened.
Apparel
Baby and children's clothing
The retailer sells clothing for babies and children as part of its broader early-childhood assortment. Apparel complements its equipment and nursery categories by allowing parents to address several routine needs through a specialist retailer rather than shopping across multiple unrelated stores.
Nursery products
Nursery and infant equipment
Baby Bunting's nursery and infant-equipment range covers the practical goods associated with preparing for and caring for a baby. These products form part of the company's one-stop specialist proposition, alongside safety equipment, clothing, toys and other children's merchandise.
Toys and play
Toys and children's products
Toys and related children's merchandise are included in the retailer's assortment, although the available reference material indicates that these categories experienced weaker demand during the 2023 period of rising household costs as parents concentrated spending on necessary items.
Digital retail platform · 2023
Online marketplace
Launched in August 2023, the online marketplace expanded the number of baby products available through Baby Bunting's website. It was intended to provide customers with a broader assortment through a single digital destination and represented an extension of the company's store-based specialty-retail model.
Brand decisions
2023
Appointment of Mark Teperson as chief executiveOtherBackground
The appointment followed a 67 percent fall in reported profit, margin pressure and the decision by Matt Spencer to step down as chief executive.
Action taken
On 23 May 2023, Baby Bunting announced Mark Teperson, former chief executive of Afterpay, as Spencer's replacement.
Aftermath
Teperson took leadership during a period of weak discretionary demand and unusually low promotional-period sales.
2023
Launch of an online marketplaceProduct launchBackground
The retailer faced changing shopping behaviour and pressure to provide a broader digital assortment during a difficult trading environment.
Action taken
Baby Bunting opened an online marketplace in August to make more baby products available through one website.
Aftermath
The marketplace broadened the company's online proposition; the available material does not quantify its subsequent commercial impact.
2022
Entry into New ZealandStrategyBackground
After building a large Australian store network, Baby Bunting identified New Zealand as a nearby market for geographic expansion.
Action taken
The company announced plans to open its first New Zealand store; the available reference later identifies four New Zealand locations.
Aftermath
The brand expanded its operating markets beyond Australia, although the available material does not provide a complete store-opening timeline.
Recent events
- 2023
Baby Bunting reports profit decline amid cost-of-living pressure[1]
Leadership change · Other
Inflation and higher living costs led customers to prioritise essential purchases, including car seats, while reducing expenditure on toys and other discretionary products. The company reported a 67 percent fall in profit and announced the departure of chief executive Matt Spencer.
- 2023
Mark Teperson appointed chief executive[1]
Leadership change
On 23 May 2023, Baby Bunting announced that Mark Teperson, formerly chief executive of Afterpay, would replace Matt Spencer as chief executive.
- 2023
Baby Bunting warns of exceptionally weak promotional-period sales[1]
Pricing · Other
The company disclosed unusually weak sales during a key promotional period. The disclosure was followed by a further fall in the company's share price as investors reacted to the trading deterioration.
- 2023
Baby Bunting launches online marketplace[1]
Product launch
The retailer opened an online marketplace intended to expand the number of baby products available through its website and give customers access to a broader assortment from one digital destination.
- 2022
Baby Bunting reports sales above A$500 million and plans New Zealand entry[1]
Other · M&A
The retailer announced that annual sales had exceeded A$500 million for the first time. It also reported a network of 65 Australian stores and announced plans to open its first New Zealand store, although margin pressure was affecting the business.
Sources1 sources
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