Good news for parents-to-be. Specialist baby-product shopper Caroline Cosgrove has revealed her tricks of the trade in her debut book.
Co-authored with journalist Liat Hughes Joshi, What to buy for your Baby: Choosing the right equipment for you (White Ladder) is a comprehensive guide to buying the best baby equipment. It also includes Mrs Cosgrove's definitive baby shopping list.
Six years ago, Mrs Cosgrove, now 36, founded Baby Concierge - a nursery advisory service to help parents-to-be source the right baby products. She tells People: "When clients ask me what they ‘need', I always point out that there's actually very little one needs for a new baby, but with all the choices available now, there is a lot one might ‘want'. Deciding what you want and what is a worthwhile purchase can be difficult. What to buy for your Baby is a guide to what's out there.
"There is a lot of this style of book in America but nothing in the UK," adds the mother-of-two. "The market is changing all the time. I am hoping this will be a staple purchase for first-time parents."
She acknowledges that products have become more fashion oriented over the past ten years. "There are a lot of stylish products that are practical and also those that are impractical. It's all about being informed."
Mrs Cosgrove is also the co-founder of Babyfy.com - a resource website on baby-related products and services.
She is married to BBC Radio Five Live presenter Nick Cosgrove. They live in North-West London with their children Juliette, 7, and James, 5, and are members of Brondsbury Park synagogue.