giggle, The Destination for Today’s New and Expecting Parent, Acquires The Cradle, the Leading Social Community and Parenting Lifestyle Site

NEW YORK--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--giggle (www.giggle.com), the one-stop source for today's new parent offering a complete checklist of only the best products for a smarter nursery, today announced that it has acquired The Cradle (www.thecradle.com), the first-of-its-kind social community and lifestyle destination focused solely on expectant and new moms. This acquisition is part of giggle’s larger strategy to expand its “by parents, for parents” solution of the best of what they need to make the transition to parenthood not only easier, but smarter and more fun.

“Our goal at The Cradle has always been to offer excellent resources and a superior online experience for expectant and new parents”

More than just a baby store, giggle is the new-parent resource -- offering must-have baby items pre-selected against the features that matter most to today’s new parent, including giggle’s own line of baby products, giggle Better Basics. All products are evaluated using the 10 giggle criteria and must meet at least four to be included in giggle’s new-parent checklist at http://www.giggle.com/about_criteria.aspx. giggle’s total-nursery product checklist includes: Furniture, Décor, Bedding & Blankets, Gear, Feeding & Nursing, Bath & Potty, Household, Toys, Layette & Clothing, Books & Music, and Gifts.

In making the announcement, Ali Wing, giggle founder and CEO and author of giggle Guide to Baby Gear (www.giggle.com/giggleguidetobabygear), the “what to get when you’re expecting” guide for pregnant moms said, "This is another important step in evolving giggle as we seek to expand our offering of ‘edited, best of’ everything new parents need. We’re thrilled about this relationship with The Cradle and their ‘best of’ content and community for the expectant parent market. Our job is to do the homework for new parents, so they can ‘giggle’. Our companies share similar values; we both always put our customers or audience first and are committed to improving their experience. Our acquisition of The Cradle will help contribute to making giggle the ultimate resource destination for expecting and new parents. And in response to feedback from our customers, we will now offer more pregnancy resources and social community.”

giggle’s “homework” also includes knowing what high-service amenities new parents need. giggle's Ultimate Gift Registry includes expectant-parent helpers, including Jumpstart Checklists, Baby Gear Guides that navigate the world of baby products, and more. As a special benefit, giggle offers expectant parents a 10% off registry completion discount.

“Our goal at The Cradle has always been to offer excellent resources and a superior online experience for expectant and new parents,” said Hilary Zalon, founder and president of The Cradle. “From the first time I walked into a giggle store, I knew that they placed the same focus on quality and the consumer experience. I have great admiration and respect for what Ali and her team have built, and know that giggle will be the perfect brand home for The Cradle.”

The Cradle has drawn widespread industry accolades since its launch in January 2008, including: Official Honoree of the 2008 and 2009 Webby Awards; Silver Winner of the 2008 and 2009 W3 Awards; 2008 and 2009 WebAward for Outstanding Achievement in Website Development, and selection as one of the “Best Parenting Web Sites” by Real Simple magazine.

About giggle

giggle is the one-stop source for today's new parent, offering a complete checklist of only the best products for a smarter nursery, including giggle’s own line of baby products, giggle Better Basics. giggle carefully edits the selection of furniture, gear, clothing, toys, bedding, baby care, and more, making sure to keep it simple, stylish and healthy. giggle helps new parents be new parents, and puts the "giggle" into parenthood. For giggle store locations or to shop online, visit www.giggle.com or call 800.495.8577.

About The Cradle

The Cradle (www.thecradle.com) is a social community and lifestyle destination for expectant and new moms. Through fresh and relevant content, personalized features and local market tools, and an engaging social networking community, The Cradle offers a central place where those who ‘need to know’ can connect with those ‘in the know'. Stylish, smart, and relatable, The Cradle is today’s resource for the journey from pregnancy to new parenthood.