THE HISTORY OF BAMBINO BABY
Welcome to Bambino Baby inc. South East Slings (previously East Sussex Slings and Eastbourne Sling Library) – set up, owned and run by Roamy Hunt.
Roamy is a qualified Babywearing Consultant who trained with Slingababy in January 2015 and School of Babywearing in August 2012. She lives with her husband, two children, two dogs and two cats in Petersfield, Hampshire.
Sling Library founder, Roamy, says:
When our eldest was born (June 2009) I was overwhelmed by the different choices of baby carrier available and had no idea what would be best for me and our new baby. There seemed so much choice but very little unbiased assistance with what would work best. Visiting a Brighton baby group that had slings you could try out massively helped, and carrying him also helped hugely with my post-partum depression.
After our second child was born I decided to set up a Sling Library (in Eastbourne, where we then lived) so other parents would be able to try out baby carriers to see what worked best for them and their lifestyle, before making the decision to purchase. I also wanted to try to help others not struggle the way I had with my eldest baby.
The Eastbourne Sling Library was set up in July 2011 to provide a service to people wanting to try out different types of baby carriers. It started with a monthly get-together in a cafe – which quickly became fortnightly and, later, expanded to 2-3 sessions each week at various baby groups around the county. It was renamed East Sussex Slings in March 2015, to reflect the wider area covered by the Sling Library, as well as the Consultancy and Retail services.
The Sling Library was renamed again to South East Slings in June 2016, prior to relocating to the Hampshire/West Sussex border in September 2016.
Alongside all of this, from 2015 onwards, Roamy trained people all over the South of England to help support other parents with babywearing; running training courses from Cornwall to Kent, from Bristol to Essex. Roamy also worked alongside a number of manufacturers, helping them develop new carriers, training their staff, plus working as a Babywearing Consultant at National Baby Shows.
When Bambino Baby opened in July 2020 South East Slings continued as the online arm, with Bambino Baby being the ‘customer facing’ side. 3 years on it felt the time had come to bring the two together.
There are three distinct ‘arms’ to Bambino Baby:
1) Visiting in person at Bambino Baby
Come along at any time to try out different baby carriers and browse all the other lovely things at the shop. There’s air con when it’s hot (and heating when it’s cold!). There’s also a comfortable feeding area, spacious baby change & loo, plus wide, level access. No appointment is needed – just come along whenever is convenient during shop hours.
Bambino Baby stocks some of the most popular carrier brands on the market – accompanied by expert help and advice.
All carriers are sold with the very popular ‘try-before-you-buy’ scheme, where you have up to 2 weeks to use the carrier as much as you like to ensure it’s right for you. If you like it, you keep it. If for any reason it’s not for you, you can return it for a refund of the purchase price, minus the 2-week hire fee. (If you’re purchasing while pregnant, the trial period starts once baby has arrived).
It is also possible to hire carriers for £15 for 2 weeks (hire extensions are £7.50 per additional week. This is very popular for holidays, weddings, christenings and other occasions.
2) Purchasing online via the Bambino Baby Inc South East Slings website
Many of the gorgeous products at Bambino Baby are being added to the website alongside the carriers. There are lots to add so it will take a little time but, eventually, most things will be on here.
Just like in-person, all carriers are sold with a 2-week try-before-you-buy period. The trial period starts from the day the carrier is posted and finishes 2 weeks later. If you wish to return the carrier please get in touch on or before the end of the 2 week period to arrange returning it.
3) Babywearing Consultancy
People generally come into the shop during shop hours to see Roamy. No appointments are needed for these.
However, pre-bookable, one-to-one Consultations – outside of shop hours – are also available. These can be at the shop, via video call or in the Client’s own home. Please note that availability of this is limited (especially for Client’s home visits).
Roamy also continues to offer Peer Supporter Training. Again, with running the shop, availability for this is limited.