Enlarge Mattel Mattel unveils their newest Barbie line featuring different body shapes – original, tall, petite and “curvy” (pictured).
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Mattel has been putting Barbie through a transformation for the past two years to bring the doll in line with realistic body standards and reflect the diversity of the kids playing with the dolls.
In June, Mattel broadened the number of skin tones, eye colors and hair styles available for the dolls, which first appeared on store shelves in 1959.
The new Barbies, costing $US9.99, are available online at Barbie.com now and will be sold in toy retailers around the world from the spring.
“The millennial mum is a small part of our consumer base”, Evelyn Mazzocco, head of the Barbie brand, tells Time, “but we recognize she’s the future”.
Goldman said the new dolls reflect a bigger societal change. It will also have seven skin tones, 22 eye colors and 24 hairstyles an acknowledgement, belated for some, that women come in many sizes and shapes.
Whether the new models will be a hit with children remains to be seen, though Chidoni said previous changes were “positively received”. While Barbie will always be a classic, one has to wonder if their latest collection will be successful, or if they’ve been passed over for doll lines that were quicker to adapt.
When it comes to Barbie’s body, it will no longer be one size fits all.
“The “Fashionista” line is a step forward, but you have to look at the aspirational Barbie or “career Barbie”, she says”.
The new cover of Time magazine, which first reported the changes, touches on topic with the headline, “Now can we stop talking about my body?”
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But as American ideals of beauty have evolved to embrace the bootylicious bodies of Beyonce, the Kardashians and Jennifer Lopez, Barbie sales have sunk 20% from 2012 to 2014.
