Mattel Competitive Advantage Mattel\'s Competitive

Mattel Competitive Advantage

Mattel's Competitive Intelligence: Eliminating Ken to Put a New Face on Barbie

According to Mattel's Feb 12, 2004 press release "The Break-Up of the Millennium for the 'Doll' of a Couple," after more than 43 years together, Barbie and Ken, have decided to spend some "quality" time apart. Despite the fact that anecdotal evidence suggests that Ken is a less than desirable addition to the Barbie family, often scratched off Christmas lists to make room for the purchase of additional dream house furniture and shunned by girls who would rather 'be' Barbie during playtime, the press release presents the alliance between the doll couple as a legendary romance. However, it also admits that Barbie has not always been faithful, and while Ken has been Barbie's sweetheart and supporter, "Barbie has befriended some of the world's most famous celebrities, from popular boy bands to super secret agent spies," and now she looks forward to life as an independent young woman. Barbie is now evolving into a "Cali Girl," a more carefree girl and returning to her Malibu roots.

Intensity of rivalry among existing competitors

Lest all of this personal information about Barbie's social seem a bit too 'real,' as if the writers at Mattel have been spending a bit too much time living in the Barbie dream house, the real issue may not be another 'guy' but some girls, namely the newly popular Bratz that have been emerging as rivals to Barbie in her core demographic group of little girls. The Bratz, like Barbie, are adult-looking dolls for little girls, often are strikingly feminine and sexual, with fashion-forward lines of clothing that make Barbie look matronly. The drama over Barbie and Ken as Ken is determined to win back his lifelong love, chronicled in a later 2004 press release about how "Hollywood's Insiders Spotted Giving Advice to America's Beloved Leading Man, Fueling Rumors of a Total Makeover" will hopefully generate renewed interest in the drama of Barbie toy universe.

Threat of entry by new competitors

Mattel's tried and tested product still has a wide audience of little girls, and also mothers, who want to recreate their childhood fondness for Barbie by passing their love of the fashion doll onto their children through gifts. The Barbie line of dolls, unlike the Bratz, includes a wide array of collector's item dolls targeted at adult collectors, which means a Barbie collector can be a collector for life. There nothing is quite like 'Barbie' in terms of retro appeal with parents as well as children, but the toy market is notoriously fickle, as children are the newest of new consumers, with little product loyalty.

Pressure from substitute products common feminist worry of the modern mother is that Barbie does not 'do' anything, and embodies a sexist image for young girls. They may prefer to buy other toys for their daughters. The 'break up' with Ken to pursue new boyfriends will do little to allay such fears, although theoretically Barbie could also pursue new careers without Ken and focus on things besides looking good in her outfits and in her pink car. However, the fact that Barbie is becoming more of a 'Cali girl' seems to indicate Mattel is going against this strategy and sticking with Barbie's traditional feminine image. To guard against the increased popularity of electronic toys for girls Mattel stated in its press release "Barbie Takes to the Runway at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show" that it has launched a 2008 Barbie interactive computer fashion game for "tech savvy girls."

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