Spring Stroller Predictions for 2014

Spring is a good season for predictions: predicting your baby’s gender, predicting the NCAA bracket or predicting when nice weather will actually come. And then there are business-related predictions: what stroller will be the next big thing? The UPPAbaby Cruz came out two years ago, and the Bugaboo Buffalo debuted last summer—there hasn’t been a “hot” stroller since then, but I think there are three big sellers on the horizon. Here are my stroller predictions for 2014.

When I saw the Bumbleride Indie 4 at the ABC Kids Expo in Las Vegas last fall, I immediately thought it was going to be a hit. Four-wheel strollers are very popular right now, and parents want all-terrain capability. Strollers like the UPPAbaby Vista and Bugaboo Cameleon have fantastic design and functionality, but they’re not truly all-terrain; the Bugaboo Buffalo is an awesome all-terrain four-wheeler, but it’s quite large and costs over $1,100, so while I love it, at that price point, it’s not for everyone.

Bumbleride Indie 4 ($599, including a bassinet)

With the Bumbleride Indie 4, parents will be getting cool Bumbleride styling and four all-terrain wheels on a comparatively compact stroller. It merges a lot of qualities that customers are looking for in one stylish package.

Maclaren literally invented umbrella strollers, and their Quest, Triumph and Volo strollers have been the gold standard for umbrella strollers for many years. And what is the most important characteristic in an umbrella stroller? It needs to be as lightweight as possible. But sometimes when you engineer a light stroller, it ends up being flimsy. That’s not the case with the Maclaren Mark II! This stroller is built for strength, but it only weighs 7.3 pounds. The innovative chassis design utilizes aircraft-grade hexagonal aluminum tubing, so it’s incredibly strong and incredibly light. That means it will be a breeze to lift but is built to last!

Maclaren Mark II ($195)

Baby Jogger is known for simplifying strollers for parents. Everyone loves their patented Quick-Fold technology, which is most famous on the Baby Jogger City Mini—just lift a strap in the seat and your stroller collapses into a compact fold in one simple step. The Baby Jogger Vue has this feature, but it also boasts yet another cool innovation that will make your life easier: it’s the only umbrella stroller with a reversible seat, allowing your baby to face you or face the world. And you can make this adjustment in one simple motion!

Baby Jogger Vue ($199.99)

There isn’t a pool or a billion dollar sweepstakes for my stroller predictions, but I think you’ll be seeing a lot of these strollers around your neighborhood very soon.