On Thursday 20th December I braved the M25 with my friend Lucy to head to the brand new Kiddicare Superstore at Lakeside Thurrock.

The Thurrock Kiddicare store is now the largest in the UK. And it is absolutely enormous. Enormous! And full to bursting with all things baby.

It is a wonder to behold and a fabulous place to visit just before Christmas and just after … they are currently in the midst of a fabulous winter sale.

Our visit was part of a bloggers open day to celebrate the launch of the new store. Lucy and I arrived early and were made very welcome by the lovely staff at the Hello World help desk.

Matilda Mae was in her pyjamas on arrival and so we made immediate use of the toilets and baby changing facilities. I was really impressed with the cleanliness of the facilities and the organisation. It was clear that a lot of thought had gone into the planning and design of not only this area of the store but the entire place. This is a super baby store designed surely by a mummy and definitely with mummies in mind! Just the little things, a child sized toilet in the adult toilet both inside a cubicle with room for a pram. Why has no one thought of this before? The nappy bin being underneath the change mat just so simple no awkward stretching and leaning while holding baby to ensure she does not roll off the mat. Little things always make a big difference and Kiddicare seem to have thought of all the little things.

For example, Lucy and I arrived between 10 and 11am we were able to take advantage of the offer of a free tea or coffee during this time. This is an offer available to all customers. What a great incentive to visit the store! I know that if Lucy and I lived closer we would definitely meet there with our babies for a coffee, a catch up and a play in the fabulous baby play den.

Kiddicare Lakeside have created a shopping experience like no other I have seen. I am not a good shopper but I had a wonderful time here.

The parking was easy and plentiful. The store is well laid out with clearly labelled and signposted areas. The facilities are bright, clean and readily available. The cafe has a great range of food and serves Starbucks coffees. There is a private breastfeeding area and baby and toddler snacks available all at reasonable prices.

In the cafe you can test out some of the highchairs available to buy in the store. We tried and fell in love with a Stokke Tripp Trapp. The purple was just so Matilda! Don’t you agree?

Kiddicare Lakeside is somewhere I would go for a day. I would plan to arrive between 10 and 11 for my free beverage. I would let Matilda play and I might make use of the free wifi!! We could then browse the store and perhaps try out some of the toddler toys before having lunch and making our purchases.

The shopping is easy. Everything that you see in store is available to take away with you that day. Each item is electronically priced so that the prices can be updated and the stock levels are also on show. If you see it you can buy it.

There is so much to see that you can either browse the store or find items within specific areas or use browse and buy consoles that are dotted around the store for customer convenience.

If you are buying a car seat then there are lots of different brands and models for you to try. The Kiddicare specialist staff will help you to find the best match for you, your child and your car. The car seats are conveniently positioned by the doors and you can test them out in your car before you buy and you can also have the installation completed and / or checked by Kiddicare experts. This is a fabulous service for parents and parents to be.

If you are trying to decorate or kit out a nursery you will find lots of inspiration at Kiddicare Lakeside. You can walk around different mini nurseries looking at cribs, cots, beds, bedding and accessories. There is something here for every one and every budget. I saw a toddler bed for just £30 and it looked really nice.

If you are thinking about baby proofing your house then at Kiddicare Lakeside you can come and try out different stair gates and safety features. There is a kitchen set up with different locks and safety products installed for you to test and to see if they would be suitable for you in your own home.

Kiddicare Lakeside sells everything that as new parents you would need. The store covers 55,000 square feet and contains 3,800 products! There are so many buggies out on display and I loved the idea of the Walk In The Park. A special place where you can take a stroll with a stroller and find the perfect pushchair for you. You can have races and really get to grips with the different travel systems available to you. This would be great fun for first time parents and would make purchasing a pram a real special occasion. David and I would have had a great time here before Esther and William were born as there are so many twins and tandems to choose from. More than we ever saw before our twins came along. There are even triple strollers on display. I might go back with my three one day and test out one of them!

If I were a first time parent, if I had my time over again, particularly if I were expecting twins I think I would make use of the free VIB service at Kiddicare Lakeside. The Very Important Baby shopping service is like personal shopping for babies and bumps. Kiddicare consultants will help you choose the best products for you from the comfort of the VIB lounge. What a great way to make an expectant mummy feel special. Could be an alternative to a baby shower especially if combined with lunch at the Kiddi Cafe!

Another great part of this Kiddicare store is the community room. Here you can partake in baby classes such as Jo Jingles or Baby Massage. You can hire the room for a meeting with your NCT group or even for a first birthday party. This would be great as people could buy presents in store and gift wrap them themselves, on the shop floor, for free! How good is that?

We had a great time in the community room during our visit meeting Jo Jingles and singing some lovely Christmas songs. Matilda had a wonderful time and demonstrated her new skill of clapping!

We had such a wonderful day at Kiddicare Lakeside and I really am keen to go back in 2013.

These are the things that really stood out in store for me:

parent and child loos
Communal baby change for mums and dads
Cafe with free drinks on offer to customers at certain times of day
Great value toddler lunches and healthy snacks
Baby and toddler play areas
Try before you buy ethos
The car seat consultancy and text booking service
The VIB shopping experience
Baby safe trollies and toddler trollies for little people to push around
The free gift wrap station
The range of products on show
The ability to really test buggies in the Walk in the Park zone
The Nursing Nest for breastfeeding mummies
The friendliness of the staff
The beautiful baby bib bunting
The bumpometer mirror for mums and the fascinating facts height charts for kids, big and small
Free wifi
A shop that embraces social media
Free home delivery for larger items
The family focus and friendly feel of the store
The community hub

There was nothing I found at Kiddicare Lakeside that I did not like apart from having to negotiate the M25 to get there and to be honest on this particular day even the traffic was not that bad.

I bought some beautiful products from the store for Esther, William and Matilda. My best buy being some wall stickers for the playroom and a lullaby light display for Matilda’s room.

Lucy and I had a wonderful day at Lakeside and we will definitely be telling everyone we know about this wonderful new store in our region.

If you need to make any baby purchases and you live close to Thurrock then do check out Kiddicare Lakeside. There is a great January sale on instore and online with up to 80% off hundreds of products!

Snap up a bargain with Kiddicare and let them show you how family friendly shopping should be done at their latest baby specialist store.