Few brands have been as revolutionary as Barbie. Since her first appearance over 60 years ago, the Barbie character has become synonymous with fashion dolls and the girl’s toy aisle itself.
The history of the Barbie brand and its first days is fascinating. Learn how she became as beloved worldwide as she is now. Keep reading to discover all of Barbie’s secrets and her plans to inspire little girls.
The Beginning of Barbie
Barbie as a toy line is the creation of Ruth Handler, the wife of Mattel co-founder Elliot Handler. While Mattel had been operating since 1945, its early years were nothing like the juggernaut we know today.
Mattel, before the invention of Barbie, was Hot Wheels and He-Man. In its early years, Mattel didn’t even make toys. By the late 50s, Mattel had switched to a toy manufacturer, but the toy industry was very different.
Girl dolls were almost exclusively baby dolls, limiting young girls’ play patterns. Ruth Handler noticed this when she saw her daughter Barbara play pretend with dolls similar to her paper toy doll.
In her playtime, she made her doll act like a real woman in adult roles that were not present in the toy aisle by then. This gave Handler the idea to make a 3D paper doll that could swap dresses, but her husband shot her idea down early.
Later on, Handler came across a Bild Lilli doll during a family vacation. While this doll was sold as a gag souvenir for adults, it fit Ruth’s mental idea of her toy.
Lilli was plastic and could change outfits, which inspired her to start working on a proper pitch to Mattel. Eventually, the board accepted her idea, and Barbie debuted in March 1959 in the United States.
Barbie In The Media
One of the most exciting aspects of Barbie’s history is her deep connection with the media. One could even argue that this has been one of the biggest secrets to her success.
Barbie’s first release in 1959 wasn’t exactly a breakout success. So inspired by the multimedia projects of Disney, Mattel began seriously investing in television.
The arrival of Barbie commercials completely turned young girls across the nation, and Barbie became a phenomenon overnight.
During this time, Mattel focused on expanding her story and persona. Mattel introduced other Barbie characters, such as her boyfriend Ken (named after Ruth’s son Kenneth), little sister Skipper, and Barbie’s best friend Teresa. It properly introduced Barbie’s name as Barbara Millicent Roberts.
For most of the 20th century, Barbie relied solely on her popularity and backstory, but Mattel once again had to change things by the 21st century.
The doll market that Barbie herself built started declining in the 90s, and in the early 2000s, a competitor in the form of Bratz took the toy department store aisles by storm.
Barbie stopped being the most important doll globally for the first time in a lifetime, and Mattel had to do something different to regain the toy aisle throne. Barbie memes and coloring pages are fun, but Mattel needed something bigger and more mainstream.
Barbie In The Movies
Mattel executive’s market study researchers concluded that young girls spent more time online than with dolls, so they had to switch their marketing.
In October 2001, Barbie starred in the animated film Barbie in the Nutcracker. The doll’s introduction in the film proved a success for Mattel and redefined how the brand and toy line would handle themselves.
The movies largely ignore the established backstory by reinventing classic stories with Barbie in a leading role, usually with a young girl in the cast, so kids identify with her.
Similarly, the toy line could now focus on specific Barbie variants from the new animated movies giving Mattel much more variety in its selection of dolls. This media format became the norm for Barbie ever since, and the movie series continues to this day with 39 unique installments.
Similarly, spin-offs like My Scene took advantage of the internet’s popularity, and Barbie is currently going strong on Netflix with the Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures series.
Barbie Sales
Presently, Barbie has firmly kept her throne as the number one tall plastic doll in the world. The brand gave Mattel 1.35 billion US dollars in 2020 alone.
According to the company itself, 90% of all young American girls have a Barbie at home, and consumer demand is off the charts. A number that sounds pretty believable when you consider that Barbie sells a hundred dolls every minute.
How much has the brand changed since its inception? At first glance, Barbie is still a fashion doll focused on interchangeable outfits. The traditional Barbie doll is a blonde girl with blue eyes, limited articulation, and an endless wardrobe.
Barbie Body Shape Changes
However, Barbie’s overall design and presentation have been constantly redefined through the years for new generations, and her supporting cast is continually changing.
In the last decade, Mattel has introduced new skin tones and eye colors to the brand and unique hair textures with different hair colors, and now they are again expanding the brand with new body types.
On top of the original design, Barbie dolls now come in Petite, Tall, and Curvy Barbie variants. Petite and Tall offer new sizes for the dolls, while Curvy changes the body type to a larger build. There is even a Barbie doll with a prosthetic limb.
Barbie, You Can Be Anything
If something has become synonymous with the brand in modern times, the “You Can Be Anything Campaign.” Combining role-play and role models, You Can Be Anything aims to provide a new generation of children with even more opportunities to pursue their career dreams.
New Barbies can be great mentors and guides. As a result of this campaign, Barbie has taken more jobs than ever before, including pilots, soccer players, Olympic athletes, presidential candidates, and even game developers.
You Can Be Anything goes beyond the play sessions, and through contests, community content, and mentorship programs, it aims to bring real opportunities for girls to experience these careers.
Barbie fans can play with her soccer doll one day, and the next day they could practice with a real pro player, thanks to Mattel’s campaigns. It’s an exciting time to be a Barbie fan.
Barbie Dreamhouse
The Barbie Dreamhouse is an iconic Barbie dollhouse toy. Most dreamhouses have three levels with a slide and pool. New models also include a handicap-accessible elevator on the outside.
The dreamhouse was first introduced in 1962 and built entirely out of cardboard. Since then, the dream house has gone through many renovations and improvements. Some newer models have even grown to three feet tall. The new taller designs make them more interactive between kids and their Barbie dolls and easier to play on.
Barbie Movies
Barbie has starred in 44 movies and two television series available on Netflix kids movies. Barbie in the Nutcracker was the first film starring Barbie and was released in 2001.
Since her debut role in 2001, Barbie has starred in one or two new Barbie movies each year, including in 2021. In 2021 Barbie was in Barbie: Chelsea & The Lost Birthday, and the new Barbie: Big City, Big Dreams were both released on Netflix. Here is a list of where to watch Barbie movies.
Barbie Facts
- Barbie’s full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts.
- Ruth Handler named Barbie after her daughter Barbara and Ken after her son Kenneth.
- Barbie’s fictional hometown, where she attended high school, is Willows, WI.
- Barbie’s birthday is March 9, 1959.
- The Ken doll joined Barbie in 1961.
- The first Barbie doll cost $3.00 in 1959 when the average cost of a movie ticket was $1.00.
- Barbie’s signature color is pink paint code PMS219.
- The Barbie doll is 11.5″ tall.
- Barbie has been portrayed in over 200 different careers with special edition Barbies.
- More than 100 Barbie dolls are sold every minute.
- Since launching her vlog, Barbie has become the #1 girl’s brand on YouTube.