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One of the more interesting side effects of having a daughter is that after years of Thomas the Tank Engine, Jay Jay the Jet Plane and the New Jersey Nets, I’ve had to learn the names of an entirely new set of characters. And despite her vilification over the past decade or two, who do I find right up there along with Polly Pocket, the Disney Princesses and My Little Ponies...? None other than Barbie.
That’s right. Barbie. It seem that the feminist bugaboo of yore has been resurrected as an empowered young woman of the new millennium. She’s got her own website, a very robust, very well-designed destination that’s also rather user friendly: my daughter’s been using it (more or less) on her own since she was three—the site talks you through each step whilst cleverly promoting each new Barbie movie.
Barbie movie? Check. Barbie stars in a series of CGI movies that are surprisingly well done retellings of classic fairy tales. Barbie: The Princess and the Pauper. Barbie: The Twelve Dancing Princesses. Barbie: The Island Princess. (Sensing a theme there? Princesses are big these days. And Barbie is all over that. Ditto mermaids (Barbie: Mermaidia) and fairies (Barbie: Fairytopia.)
But what’s most interesting about all these movies is how Barbie has evolved. She’s the heroine. She’s athletic, strong, capable and while she may have a crush on Julian (her working class tutor in Princess and the Pauper,) she’s not sitting around helplessly waiting for him to rescue her. What’s more, Julian respects her for her independence.
I’ll leave the sociology out of this one- you could no doubt write a book about it—and concentrate on the marketing implications. Because what Mattel has done here is pretty remarkable: taken a brand that was not only perceived to be outdated and out-of-touch with consumers, but was actively disliked and turned it into a relevant brand with good buzz. Now for women of a certain generation, “Barbie” will always be synonymous with a plastic model of unrealistic feminine beauty, a toy destined for scorn. But for my daughter and her friends, it seems that Barbie will now be the cool older sister who taught them that girls could be smart, strong heroes and still look good doing it. That’s a pretty amazing transformation.
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Comments
Glad to hear that Barbie is creating a buzz again! With the disgusting junk like "Bratz" coming out on the market, it's good to see that a classic company such as Mattel can keep up in the game when it comes to marketing and being successful at it!
Posted by: Brick Marketing | 04.14.08
Mattel and Disney are neck in neck in my household, but the photo finish probably goes to Disney since we live about 90 miles from Disneyland (which completes "the experience")
Posted by: Paul Barsch | 04.14.08
Have you seen the Barbie dog, Tanner? It literally eats and poops. Then you pick up the turds and they’re magically “food” again. It was so wrong, I had to buy one for my niece just to weird out my brother.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjxHgsdKEJk&feature=related
There’s also an abnormally large cat that you feed with a water bottle (ever tried to do this to a cat?). It will then pee (if you squeeze her). LOL.
Posted by: Leigh | 04.14.08
So I asked my 11-year-old for her take on Barbie. She hasn't played with her for years. But according to my kid, as Toad says, Barbie is always the one who gets everyone out of a jam (in the movies). She also could sing the refrain of Barbie's theme song, "B-A-R-B-I-E... be who you wanna be...."
My take on it: Well, it definitely could be a lot worse! But unfortunately, I can't get that jingle out of my head......
Posted by: Ann Handley | 04.14.08
I'll try to ask my 6-yr-old niece about Barbie when I see her this weekend. She's heavy into the American Girl dolls these days -- and princesses, of course. This is a child who asks to be read aloud to from the Disney catalog, no kidding. Don't blame me; I didn't raise her. If I can get her to open up, I'll be interested to hear how she describes the different dolls' "personalities."
Posted by: fermata | 04.14.08
@Leigh- You ought to meet my sister-in-law. She too thought Tanner (last year- he's been banned for lead paint or somesuch) and the Peeing Cat (this year) would make hilarious birthday presents.
So yes, I am quite familiar with them!
@Paul - I've been to both World and Land and I actually like DisneyLand a lot - there's a certain old school charm to it, especially Tommorrowland and it doesn't feel as overwhelming as DisneyWorld.
@Brick- yes. Bratz are truly disturbing.
Posted by: Toad | 04.14.08
@Ann-- They've done away with that song (I think) but the movies have their own cavalcade of songs-that-stick-in-your-head-all-day-long
@fermata: I've been warned about American Girl dolls. Specifically that they can set you back hundreds of dollars. Barbie & Disney have the advantage of being close to disposable.
Posted by: Toad | 04.14.08
Yes, the American Girl dolls are incredibly expensive, not to mention the endless array of accessories and "friends." I was just reading about a new computer game too. Then you get to the in-store experience (which, thankfully, I have not had to endure first-hand), where you can have high tea with your doll, host her birthday parties, etc. Mo' money, mo' money!
Frankly, I think American Girl represents the worst in marketing to kids(and the dolls are pretty creepy too). But man, they sure are successful.
Posted by: fermata | 04.14.08
Barbie should focus on relevant themes to her product lines. How about a "Katrina Disaster Zone Barbie" or a "Democratic Candidate Barbie"?
Posted by: Levon Guiragossian | 04.14.08
I always wanted a Barbie when she was first introduced to the market, but my parents never bought one for me. All I ever got was a cheap replica called Debbie or something. Do I sound deprived? :)
My daughter had eight Barbies when she was young. Get that - eight of them!! And I only bought one of them for her.
As far as I'm concerned, no matter how she's marketed, she's still a disproportional big-boobed, tiny-waisted young lady living in a fairytale world. Feminist? How'd that happen?:)
Posted by: Elaine Fogel | 04.14.08
Glad to hear that Barbie is creating a buzz again!
Posted by: güzel sözler | 04.14.08
Starting to wonder... is there any "adult" brand we could bring out of the "funeral"? Which "person" would make our generation's hearts beat faster? Rambo? Rocky? :-)
Posted by: Dusan | 04.15.08
Barbie has always been a strong brand, it is good to see her reinvented. However whatever happened to Cindy?
Posted by: Olivia | 04.15.08
I, too grew up with Barbie. My 10 year old niece is a Barbie hound too. As we sit and play with her and her friends, it struck me as funny that now, after almost 40 years, I look at Barbie as a brand and not something cool to play with.
She's a winner. No doubt about it. The epitome of a strong brand, despite many attempts to take her down, she rises over and over again.
Alot of "grown up" brands can take a good lesson from her.
Posted by: Dawn | 04.15.08
Dear Toad~
Just looking at the DVD case you post w/this article it seems that Barbie still exudes everything that is objectification. I don't think it Utopian to offer our children toys that help give them a useful perspective for the world.
Sounds like Barbie may have taken a step in the right direction w/independence & being who she is. However, if the doll still comes w/make up applied and is limited by accessories like clothing, a mansion, a car, then she'll always be a consumer, tied to beliefs of what should be consumed (i.e. the latest & greatest) and therefore subject to objectification.
Here's my hopes to Barbie meeting those challenges.
D
Posted by: D | 04.18.08