£17k on baby clothes?

by Ally Hunt on 08 July 2009  |  9 comments
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A mum has admitted to spending £17k on designer clothes and shoes for her baby son who isn't even a year old yet. What could she have done with that money?

I've just read the most astonishing article. A young mum in Tyne & Wear has admitted to spending an unbelievable £17k on designer clothes and shoes for her baby son, who isn't even a year old yet. £17,000?

Well, you're probably thinking she must be a WAG, living the high life with her footballer husband who earns this much in a week.

But you'd be wrong, as it turns out that they're just a normal family - she's a part-time administrative assistant, and her partner's a carpet fitter.

So how can they possibly afford to fritter so much money away? Well she isn't keen to go into details of their income, but you can't help thinking that for most of us, spending that much money in so little time would involve a credit card or two.

Has the public obsession with celebrity lifestyles gone slightly mad? You just know that this baby boy, immaculately turned out though he undoubtedly is, is completely oblivious to what he's wearing, be it a t-shirt from Ralph Lauren or Tesco. Is it really worth spending £20 more?

What's more, knowing the rate at which babies grow most of his fancy clothes are bound to be sitting in a wardrobe, barely worn and completely outgrown. What's the point?

So what could she have done with this cash?

Well, assuming it's not borrowed money she could have used it to pay down the mortgage, or for a house deposit, if they don't already own their home. Or put it away for her son's future.

But if the items were bought on what used to be called the "never-never," the first thing she should do is cut up any credit cards and consider shifting any balances to a 0% card. Getting into debt, particularly during these credit-crunched times for the sake of a few frivolous purchases is crazy and won't help the family in the long run.

Then, I'd put all of the designer outfits and shoes that are now too small for her son on eBay. She should make what she can from them, and then put the money into her son's Child Trust Fund (CTF).

You can stash up to £1,200 away into a CTF account, each year, and it'll grow free from tax.

Do this every year until he's 18 (assuming it grows at 5%) and he could be looking at a lump sum of over £36,000 (before charges) when he leaves school - enough to help with those university fees, lay down a deposit on a flat or buy a car.

And bound to be more useful to him than a bunch of fancy clothes he's outgrown...