"Toys 'R' Us thinks that Babies 'R' Us will be their savior, but the question is, how are they going to meet the increased competition?" said Chris Byrne, a New York-based independent toy consultant.

Bob Waller, president of the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association, a Mount Laurel, N.J.-based industry trade association, concurred, noting that discounters want a larger share of the $6 billion baby business, which he estimates is growing by as much as 6 percent a year.

Consumers shopping for baby products recently appeared very price-conscious — a fact retailers are well aware of.

"Price is really my main focus, just because of the way the economy is right now," said Cara Parsons of Bristol, Conn., shopping for baby products at Wal-Mart in Rocky Hill, Conn. She has a 2-month-old son and 3 1/2 year-old daughter.

Cindy Amato of Fairless Hills, Pa., buys items such as baby wash and shampoo for her 10-month-old at Wal-Mart, but she likes to buy bigger items such as car seats and strollers at Babies "R" Us.

"Not that Wal-Mart doesn't have quality, but Babies 'R' Us is strictly a baby store," said Amato.

Babies "R" Us — the nation's largest baby products chain with 200 stores, considered the crown jewel of Toys "R" Us Inc. — has kept ahead of the competition. Last year the division had an 11 percent increase in sales, to $1.76 billion. Meanwhile, Toys "R" Us U.S. revenues fell 4 percent, to $6.48 billion.

Unlike its discount rivals, Babies "R" Us has such amenities as expectant-mother parking near the front entrance of stores and special nursing rooms. It also offers a wider selection than discounters — stores typically range from 24,000 to 37,000 square feet and carry about triple the number of baby products as mass merchants, according to Sean McGowan, an analyst at the investment firm Harris Nesbitt.

A typical Babies "R" Us store has 100 different car seats and 30 styles of baby jumpers, for example. Babies "R" Us also is fast to jump on trends — such as strollers that match the patterns and colors of cribs and other accessories.

But discounters' baby sections also are growing. A Target store in Brooklyn had more than 10 aisles of baby products, from high chairs and strollers to nursing accessories, including well-known brands such as Graco and Evenflo.

Some consumers also prefer the logistics at Babies "R" Us.

Wal-Mart "is very large to maneuver with two children," said Jennifer Mohring of East Brunswick, N.J., who has a 4-month old son and a 3-year-old daughter. She was at a shopping center that has both a Wal-Mart and Babies "R" Us.

McGowan, the analyst who recently visited the baby department at a Target store in New Jersey, believes discounters' current displays don't offer the same kind of emotional appeal as Babies "R" Us stores, which start with an open layout that allows shoppers to see the whole store from the entrance. They have cribs and other furniture displayed in model rooms, and generous seating in the baby registry area.

Babies "R" Us might have an easier time fending off competition than Toys "R" Us did because of inherent differences in the merchandise they carry. Unlike toys, which see most sales in the fourth quarter, the baby business is year-round, and depends less on big hits.

That makes it tougher to "jump in and out of," said Bill Sims, a toy analyst at Smith Barney Citigroup. Last holiday season, discounters, particularly Wal-Mart, cut prices on the hottest holiday toys in September, six weeks earlier than a year before. That hurt Toys "R" Us' sales and profits.

Still, Byrne said, discounters can shift their markdown strategy if Toys "R" Us focuses its efforts on its babies business. This "could give discounters impetus for them to get more competitive," he said.

Another difference between babies' products and toys is that parents shop at stores such as Babies "R" Us for about two years, while they're shopping for toys for 10 years or more. That means retailers need to continually woo a new generation of consumers.