MATER has long been renowned as a leader in health care in Queensland and now that reputation has extended to the quality of its nappies.
Mater Nappies has been named as a most trusted brand in baby care among Australian parents, by securing a spot in the country’s top-10 products of the decade.
Voted on by thousands of shoppers, the only certified Australian-made, hospital-developed nappy range has been listed amongst iconic brands as a leading product in baby care by consumer awards company, Product of the Year.
Launched in 2013, Mater Nappies are part of a wider maternity and baby care product range to support mothers with high-quality and locally made products, developed by Australia’s largest maternity service, Mater Mothers’ Hospitals.
Mater Products director Tania Alves said Mater Health had “a long-standing history of providing exceptional care to mothers and their babies in hospital, and the development of products was a natural progression for Mater enabling us to continue this care into the home”.
“Our mums and midwives kept letting us know they weren’t completely happy with the baby care products being used or what was on offer in their local pharmacy or supermarket and so we started to look for other products that would better meet the needs of new parents and infant skin health, however, no products lived up to our high Mater standards of safety, trust and affordability,” Ms Alves said.
“So, we decided to make our own and that’s how our Mater Products’ journey started.
“Additionally, during the research phase we found 80 per cent of newborns weigh less than 3.5kg and the traditional newborn-size nappies don’t always fit for the first weeks, and leak.
“We know this from experience because Mater Mothers’ Hospitals deliver more than 10,000 babies a year.
“So we developed Mater Nappies-Newborn First Weeks to provide a smaller, high-performing nappy for these babies – a nappy specifically designed to fit babies in their first weeks.
“Mater Mothers’ Hospitals, as Australia’s largest provider of maternity care, is the only maternity hospital in the world to have developed and made nappies.”
Co-creator in the Mater Nappies project and mother Erika Little was involved with testing and development of the product range from the beginning and is delighted to see the range recognised in the Product of the Year list.
“I loved being a part of the co-creation process,” she said.
“We tried and tested each of the products, and all of our feedback was taken on board, until the products were perfected.
“Even though my son Abel is no longer a baby, we are still using the Mater products, particularly the skin-care range, because I trust that I can safely use these products on his skin especially when it becomes dry and sensitive.”
Ms Alves said the Mater products were developed from feedback from more than 3000 midwives and mothers across Australia.
“Combining this focus on collaborating with our consumers with our product quality, Mater Nappies enable our teams to continue the exceptional care from Mater Mothers’ Hospitals into the home,” she said.
Ms Alves said proceeds from Mater Nappies supported Mater Little Miracles to fund research projects that would give babies throughout Australia the best possible start in life.
