barbie.

Three barbies are sold every second earning $3.6 billion a year. Barbie stands for the modern toy industry, she is a lifestyle brand. There is a strong rumour that there are more Barbies in America than people. Barbie is sold in 150 countries and is the only plaything to reach the world's top 100 brands above Jack Daniels and one below Fedex. She has had over ninety careers and the most prestige designers have created her clothes. Such as Calvin Klein, Vivienne Westwood, Givenchy, Armani, Versace, Ralph Lauren and Dior. 92% of Barbies clothes are re designed ever year, she stays in fashion with a constant turnover on money making accessories. 

Ruth Handler wanted her daughter to dream and have a better career than a house wife. Barbie was born in the 50's and the new generation was independent and did not need to stay at home they could become career girls, go to glamorous parties, wear stilettos and be high fashion. The bikini was invented in the 50's. Barbie allowed girls to be part of fashion after the shortages of world war one. The clever thing about barbie was that you could change her surroundings, hair, clothes even nail colour because she was just a mannequin, you made barbie who you wanted to be. A doll that allowed girls to become gorgeous and glamorous in which any way they felt. Barbie has always been updated to keep up with the changing trends, even her body type has been changed to keep with the nations idea of perfection. although if Barbie where a real person she would be so under weight she would not be able to menustrauate. Ken on the other hand has only ever been updated once which was not a success by Hollywood stylist Phillip Bloch to look hotter, Ken is better enjoyed when seen as a safe fatherly figure to the children. The average american girl owns ten Barbie dolls but only one Ken as he is seen as an accessorie.

Handler decided to please the children instead of the mothers. Mothers hated Barbie complaining she had 'to much of a figure', but young girls loved Barbie. Lilli an adult doll from a German cartoon is an illicit sex symbol. Some call the moment Handler met Lilli the most important moment in toy history. Lilli only four years older than Barbie is her doppleganger, apart from Barbie having no nipples. Long legs, bigs boobs, tiny waist, blonde hair, blue eyeshadow they both have sex appeal.

Barbie's life has alwas been turbulent and by the 1980's Barbie was looking old. Jill Barad saved the day and was at the time the highest paid women in the world getting $38, 000 a year. Barbie was reincarnated and her earning raised dramatically from $200 million to $1.9 billion. Barbie who had always disgusted feminists was now a symbol of girl power using the tag line 'We Girls Can Do Anything'. Barad always dressed in perfectly but mainly in a pink suit and sky scraper heels, she painted mattel in bright colours and lived in a princess masion.

Although Barbie has had competitors they have never reached such dizzy heights, until Isaac Larian invented a scary looking toy called a Bratz doll. Bratz were invented when Wal-Mart told Larian if he brought in  doll that could rival Barbie he had a deal. Bratz are targeting seven to ten year olds whilst barbie was targeting three to eleven year olds. Tween agers are a massive spending group. Tweens control over $1.7 billion dollors and are perfect for the toy market because they have short attention spans and easy spending money. Contempory American tweens have been proven as the most consumer involved, brand obsessed and materrialistic generation. Seventy five percent of tweens want to be rich and famous when they grow up. American children have bonded to brands by the time they are two. This has not made the country happy, an average childs stress level and anxierty levels are the same as children that would have been admitted to clinics for psychiatric disorders in 1957. Small children are being farmed to become consumers.

Bratz dolls are hyper sexualised and mothers that were once offended my Barbie's figure anow see her as a comforting figure. Bratz have been attacked, complaining that Bratz make the body seen as a "form of play". The positive thing about bratz in that the dolls are multi cultural. Bratz have the cool factor and come with endless accessories. They have bee stung lips and huge eyes. The head is much bigger than the body which is also a serious effect from being anorexic. Sixteen layers of paint are used to created the Bratz make up. When bratz first came out Larian was going from store to store trying sell these dolls and no one wanted them. His daughter yasmin said she liked them so he kept pushing and named one of the dolls after her. An advert for bratz was put on TV even though you could only buy them in very few shops. The advert caught attention and suddenly Bratz dolls were everywhere. They became the number one fashion doll in the toy industry.

Barbie in retaliation brought out 'My Scene' which was a collection of Anti Barbie dolls, tweens thought that Barbie was for younger children, therefore loosing the 'cool' factor. Yet tweens would still have Barbie back packs, pencil cases, they still loved the brand just not the doll.

My Scene was Mattel's answer. A Barbie with more attitude, plumper lips and more make up. My scene was a vehicle for girls dreams and frustrations. They were described as "sex in the city without the sex", although they do look like copies of bratz.

http://myscene.everythinggirl.com/home.aspx

Then came Flavas in 2003 having personal style, Mattel tried to use the huge surge of hip hop at the time to create dolls with tattoos, bling and exposed midrifs. Critics thought the doll was too nasty and edgy therefore it was discontinued within a year. Isaac Larian commented on the dolls "the only thing missing is a cocine vial".

Body Shop brought out this advirtisment which I think is a very healthy thing to do as children have so much pressure on them to be skinny and attractive.