Baby and Toddler Products - Italy

Italy is Europe’s fourth-largest market for nursery products and one of the most brand- and design-conscious baby markets in the world. At the same time it is a market under demographic pressure: births fell to about 370,000 in 2024 and to a new historic low of roughly 355,000 in 2025, with a fertility rate of only about 1.14 children per woman. Fewer babies, older and wealthier first-time parents and strong involvement of grandparents translate into a market that is shrinking in units but where spending per child remains high and consumers trade up to safe, well-designed and durable products.

For the core scope of this study (nursery equipment, furniture and textiles, 0–3 apparel and infant/pre-school toys) we estimate a retail value of roughly €1.8–2.2 billion. Including the FMCG baby categories (nappies, wipes, toiletries and baby food), the total mother-and-baby market exceeds €4 billion. The nursery segment tracked by NIQ declined by about 3% in value in 2025, while car seats (driven by stricter rules) and baby electronics grew.

Key findings for foreign suppliers:

• Concentrated retail, fragmented specialists: Prénatal Retail Group (Prénatal, Toys Center, Bimbostore) dominates specialist retail; the rest of the specialist channel is organised in buying groups and consortia (GIPI, Io Bimbo, Beberoyal) and several hundred independent stores, which are served by importers and agents.

• Strong domestic brands: Chicco (Artsana), Peg Perego, Inglesina, Foppapedretti, Brevi, Cam, Picci and Pali set high expectations for quality and design in heavy nursery and furniture. New entrants succeed with clear differentiation – innovation, safety features, sustainability or price-performance.

• Best opportunities: i-Size (R129) car seats and anti-abandonment devices, compact travel strollers, baby electronics (monitors, bottle preparers, sterilisers, breast pumps), convertible/evolving furniture, sleep products, ergonomic carriers, silicone and sustainable feeding ranges, Montessori-style wooden toys and ceremonial/gift clothing.

• Private label: grocery chains, discounters (Lidl, Eurospin), non-food discounters (Action, Pepco), apparel chains (OVS, Original Marines, Piazza Italia) and the specialist groups’ own labels offer volume business for no-name manufacturers with robust compliance and test documentation.

• Market access: EU suppliers benefit from free movement of goods; all suppliers must comply with the General Product Safety Regulation, toy and childcare standards and Italy-specific labelling rules (Italian language, environmental packaging labels, EPR registrations). Non-EU suppliers additionally need an EU-based economic operator, customs clearance and must factor in duties (e.g. about 12% for apparel) and 22% VAT. Section 8 lists importers, distributors, buying groups and directly importing retailers with website and – where published – general e-mail, switchboard number and supplier registration links, grouped by channel and product focus.