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You are here : Parent24 : Preschool (2-6) : Development & Behaviour : Are boys more expensive?

Are boys more expensive?

Clothing and schooling costs seem to put boys in a higher bracket.

By Adele Farmer

Pic: iStockphoto.com

Article originally in Parent24

"I've always wanted a son." I said haphazardly the other day at my desk. "They're more fun, they're good and gruwelik and they're cheaper. There aren't all those extra hair clips and accessory 'must haves' to buy."
"Erm… actually…", said Adele, well of wisdom and mother of two boys. "Boys, I think, are more expensive than girls. They have all that extra sport kit to get…"
"…And uniforms and boys' clothing is just more expensive. Think about what a boy's jacket costs as opposed to a girls' jacket." finished off Zayaan.

And I did think about it. And asked some questions… According to Woolworths' buyer for Children's wear, Anton Peters, buying for boys is more expensive. Not only do the "blocks" (squares of fabric that little boys' clothing get cut from) cost more but the embellishments on the garment are often more expensive. That "stressed" look on a cargo pants takes a couple of washes to achieve along with that mock cowboy buckle and cargo pants' pockets. Boys' clothing is also made to be more durable so the material itself costs more. Compare that to the little tank top with printed flower detail that Janey wears and you'll see why Johnny's mommy is spending a little more to clothe her son.

And that's just the clothing! The results of the Parent24 2009 survey show that: "A significant relationship was found between the number of children in a family and parental ratings of how important fees are." Unsurprisingly the more kids you have the more likely you are to moan about school fees being expensive. Also the less wealthy you are you're also more likely to rate fees as important. But here's the kicker…"Parents with at least one boy in the family were more likely to say fees were very important. This was the case even when controlling for the number of children in the family and the income of the parent." What does this mean? Is it possible that perhaps boys’ schooling is also more expensive?

So maybe boys are still more fun – but perhaps you're paying for the privilege?

What do you think? Do boys cost more?

The Parent24 2009 survey had more than 8000 responses. The survey, weighted by gender, race and education, represents approximately 7 million metropolitan adults educated to the level of at least matric, across South Africa. For more about the methodology and for results analysis by Jean Redpath and Michael O’Donovan of Hlakanaphila Analytics, download the Parent24 2009 survey PDF. Or see full results.