Prepping for P1: School Uniforms Shopping @ Bibi & Baba, Orchard Road

Call me crazy {or kiasu haha} but last weekend we went to buy Lil Pumpkin's Primary 1 school uniforms!! Actually I was very excited to buy them even much earlier after her school registration was confirmed but our schedule got pretty hectic.

As with many other local schools, Lil Pumpkin's school uniforms are supplied by Bibi & Baba. Oh the memories!! During my time, my school uniforms were from Bibi & Baba too.

Established in 1947, the company began as a children's dress shop, which was then called Majestic. They then manufactured sportswear, jeans, shirts etc. and even exported to overseas fashion floors of Macy’s or Marks & Spencer!! But then in the late 90s industry changes made it too expensive to continue with this business model and they focused more on supplying uniforms locally to schools, hospitals and corporations.

The boy was saying, "why make us take such a tourist shot??" haha... Hey, it's our first time buying her primary school uniforms and I will take as many photos as I want to capture the memories! (⌒∇⌒。)

I don't remember buying my school uniforms at Orchard when I was younger but since 2012, Bibi & Baba set up a retail shop at Far East Shopping Centre. So convenient!!

Next month will be pretty busy with her K2 graduation party, P1 orientation, our next holiday {hurray!}, Seussical the Musical etc. and I usually try to avoid the Christmas shopping crowd in Orchard during December so it was probably best that we got her uniforms and whatever else we needed for her new school term {excluding the textbooks} this month.

I think the uniforms will be sold during orientation but I'm sure there will be a whole swarm of parents / kids waiting to try the sizes and order.. so we might as well get it over and done with.

It was very easy to go to the shop - just up the escalator from the sidewalk and turn left.

Bibi & Baba generally supplies the school uniforms, PE t-shirts, PE shorts, house polo shirts, ties, hats and even socks for a fair number of local schools. Each school has their own restrictions though and for some, you must buy certain items directly from the school e.g. school badges and house t-shirts. 

The various school uniform sample sizes are neatly hung up on racks and if you're there for the first time like us, you can try on the uniforms for the right fit. The salesladies will recommend sizes if you need help too.

When we went around 6pm on a weekend, there was only 1 other customer but soon after, a crowd started coming in. The shop isn't very big, plus there are only 2 changing rooms to try on the uniforms, so try to go during non-peak season i.e. weekdays, and not so close to when school term starts.

I decided to get Lil Pumpkin 3 sets of school uniforms and 2 sets of PE attire as for her school, the students are allowed to wear the PE attire the whole day if they have PE lessons for the day. This should be sufficient for the whole week.

Size-wise, I got them a size up as she'll probably grow a bit by the time January comes and I want her uniforms to last at least a year (♥◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ﾉﾟ The cost of each uniform will differ with each school but just to give you an idea, her uniform costs about $30/set and PE attire about S$17/set.

Obviously I'm not going to post photos of her in her new school uniforms for privacy reasons, but just to share that when I saw her in them for the first time, I got pretty emo. So so so surreal... showed them with my friends and some of them said that she looks just like me as a little school girl last time!! hahaha

Lil Pumpkin loves her new school uniforms too and is looking forward to starting primary school. I'm thrilled that she's embracing this new chapter of her life so wholeheartedly! ♥

Tips for buying {your first} school uniforms:

• Try to go during non-peak periods i.e. weekdays and not near starting of terms
• Bring your child along to try for sizes, especially if you're buying school uniforms for the first time
• Call in advance to check that they have stock for your required uniforms 
• Kids will grow so buy as large as you can without your child looking awkward {1-2 sizes up}. You can always hem the bottoms or add elastic waistbands. 
• No need to buy in excess as they will grow, and you can always buy more later. 3 sets of uniforms & 3-4 sets of PE attire {heard some P1 kids wear them 4 times a week} should be sufficient for 5 school days especially for lower primary, even if you don't do any washing for the week.  
• There's a sign inside the Bibi & Baba store that says you need to fill up a form then bring it to the cashier to order. I guess that's if you wait for school orientation and they will give you an order form but it's not necessary.
• Bibi & Baba accepts cash, Nets and credit card payments. 
• If you already know your child's uniform size, you can also order from Bibi & Baba's new school uniforms online store and have them delivered to you directly {S$7 delivery charge for local addresses}. It just launched so selection is limited.
• There are uniform size charts available for some schools on the website so you can pop by to have a look for reference before you head down to the shops to try as well.
• Bibi & Baba also offers made-to-measure uniforms.
• Goods sold are non-refundable, but exchangeable within 14 days with receipt.

Bibi & Baba @ Orchard
#02-28, Far East Shopping Centre, 545 Orchard Road
Open 10am - 7pm {Mon - Sat}, 10am - 6pm {Sun}
Website: http://www.uniformsmart.com

For more of  Lil Pumpkin's Primary School journey:

P1 Registration Experience

School Uniform Shopping @ Bibi & Baba

P1 Orientation Day
First 3 Days of P1
10 Types of Parents in Whatsapp Groups
First Primary School Parent-Teacher Meeting for P1 Sem 1
Short Pixie Bob for School
Ergonomic School Bag Shopping & Tips for Choosing One
JUMPY Plus Kids Smartwatch for School
What's An Appropriate Slumber Party Age for Kids?
3M LED P1610 Polarizing Task Light to Protect Eyes When Studying 
Creative HansVision Chinese Exam E-Dictionary PX2131 Review

For tips on P1 preparation:

Comparison of Popular Maths Enrichment Classes

20 Things to Buy for Kids Entering P1

20 Tips from Other Parents for Kids Entering P1

25 Advice Tips from the School for Kids Entering P1 

20 How to Learn Chinese Tips

 

Good deal to share:

 Discount Code for Agape Babies: One-Stop Shop for Mums & Kids

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