ICYMI, a lot of Barbie dolls are now made in Indonesia, and less from China. This did not prevent Chinese sellers from offering Barbie dolls at competitive prices. I recently bought a Barbie Looks doll from a Chinese seller (not from any local seller) because the price was unbeatable.
How can Chinese businesses offer cheaper prices for the same item? No, it's not because they sell knock-offs! Their government subsidizes favored businesses allowing them to sell their goods for less. If this continues, local sellers, especially the official local distributor (Richwell aka Richprime aka KidsCompany) might suffer. Not only does the Philippine government offer little to no subsidies, the government also tax imported goods (even if they have no direct local competition) making Barbie's more expensive. The local SRP of a Barbie Looks doll is a little over US$50.
If I have to buy from Richwell, I wait for the sale season or maybe after a year after the release. They usually offer huge discounts by then. Barbie's popularity has declined despite the movie, sellers still have stocks years after the initial release.
Of course, you can't blame the local sellers for selling at a high price. They got it for a high price as well. In the same manner, you can't blame buyers who buy from China since they want to get the best value out of their hard-earned money. I blame the government but I wouldn't expect most doll collectors to agree.
