Re: Cathy's comment about Tanita, who makes the Baby Weigh for Medela, pulling their nearly identical BLB-12 and only making it available in lots of 500, "I can't help but wonder why this happened."
I agree with her concerns. I doubt that Tanitia initiated this move.
I think we need to take care when we consider all pump manufacturers our "friends."
Our wonderful friendly pump reps are selected and/or trained to be friendly, just like the friendly Ross reps are.
And their job, just like their formula counterparts, is to sell, or at least to positively effect sales.
This is not to say that our interests and the pump companies' interests do not ever coincide, but they are different.
The bottom line, not love of babies, LCs or breastfeeding, drives their decisisons.
And the bigger the company, the more likely it is to behave like microsoft, making sweetheart deals to eliminate their competition.
This is one reason I view the relationship between pump manufacturers and lactation consultants, including, eg, the sponsorship of breastfeeding/lactation events, etc., with an eye already jaundiced by the effect formula manufacturers have had on pediatricians.
I would love to see us (ILCA?) develop a cooperative to buy the BLB-12, but in lots of 500 wholesale, it's going to amount to something like a quarter million dollars!
Who's going to back us on that? (Well, maybe a competition pump manufacturer!)
Tina Smillie
>Wed, 19 May 2004 20:50:35 -0400
>Reply-To: Lactation Information and Discussion
> <[log in to unmask]>
>Sender: Lactation Information and Discussion
> <[log in to unmask]>
>From: "Catherine Watson Genna, IBCLC" <[log in to unmask]> <http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/scripts/wa.exe?A2=ind0405c&L=lactnet&D=0&O=A&T=0&P=21210>
>Subject: Re: Baby Weigh scale
>In-Reply-To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> Tanita is still manufacturing the scales, but they are no longer
> selling them in lots of less than 500! This effectively eliminates all
> the small retailers we've all gotten them from, at half the price of
> the Milky Weigh (which is manufactured by Tanita for Medela). I can't
> help but wonder why this happened. Perhaps we (ILCA?) can start a
> scale buying cooperative?
>
Perhaps we (ILCA?) can start a scale buying cooperative?
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