Barbie's Career Move Leads to Warning

Barbie dolls are losing favor with kids.  Sales of Mattel's signature doll dropped a whopping 21% last quarter, reports Matt Townsend at Bloomberg News. Revenue has declined more than 10% for the last four quarters. 

Toymaker Mattel announced disappointing earnings yesterday, missing analysts projections by $0.10 per share. One reason profits were discouraging has been the decline in popularity of the iconic Barbie doll, sales of which fell 12% — the fourth quarter in a row that Barbie turnover declined year-over-year.

Toymaker Mattel announced disappointing earnings yesterday, missing analysts projections by $0.10 per share. One reason profits were discouraging has been the decline in popularity of the iconic Barbie doll, sales of which fell 12% — the fourth quarter in a row that Barbie turnover declined year-over-year.

She’s had countless wardrobe changes, new hair colours and tried out 150 jobs. But this time, 55-year-old Barbie may need more than a career makeover to stay alive, as her popularity wanes amid competition from newer dolls and rising interest in smartphones and tablets. Mattel Inc., the world’s largest toymaker, said global sales for its iconic Barbie doll fell 15% in the second quarter ended June 30, the steepest drop since mid-2009. Barbie sales have slumped in eight of the past 10 quarters.

Meet Lammily, the new "average" Barbie doll that's challenging the toy industry and helping kids see life for what it is. After going down a storm in the US, her creator has just announced a shipping date for the toys and is also releasing stickers to make them even more realistic. (The dolls are obviously not in any way connected to the Mattel toy that they implicitly criticise.)

The first Barbie-themed restaurant has opened in Taiwan, where Barbie dolls were originally manufactured. Barbie has inspired many things in her 54-year existence: little girls’ imaginations, artwork and feminist ire among them. Now Barbie Cafe, a restaurant dedicated to the doll, has opened in Taiwan and it’s as pink and plastic as one might expect.