Friday, August 15, 2014

On Making a Difference

I have been buying Babs again at SRP. Before, I only buy when they offer discounts. This has been very effective in communicating may sentiments to the sole distributor about their pricing scheme.

Before I start being grateful for the changes, it is important to note that only one company is authorized by Mattel to distribute Barbie products in our country. It sounds like monopoly to me as they are not affected by competition. This set up is not really beneficial to the consumer.

Since competition is not at play (at least not blatantly since there are other sources like buying online), a consumer like me could only rely on other market forces like supply and demand, specifically controlling the demand. That is when I decided not to buy Barbies at their suggested retail price. I also decided not to promote the product.

It is also important to note that a lot of dolls here cost about twice as much due to the shipping cost and other taxes and of course, the monopoly. The Spotlight Fashionista, for example, originally sold at $17 at the shop.mattel.com. They used to sell at $34 locally. They are now discounted at $13.75 at the online Mattel shop. Locally, the discounted price is $23. That's still higher that the original price at the online store!

Even at the discounted price, I am still not buying any of the Spotlight Fashionista. They look like fashion victims with those gaudy gowns. The only thing desirable are the articulated bodies and the blings. I am not paying $23 for those.

The model-muse-wannabe Fashionista sells at the Mattel shop for about $11. They sell here for $23. Although they have fashionable clothes, the lack of articulation is a major disappointment. They became peg warmers here. They eventually reduced the price to $16 locally, although some variants are still at $23. I'm still not buying since I only want the clothes.

I felt that all the consumers who decided to send a message to the distributor by not buying are finally being heard. The local distributor recently released the Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse dolls (at least, the 4 of them). I was surprised that they are now selling them locally after they were introduced over a year ago. I was expecting them to be priced at $34 but it was an added surprise to see them selling it at $23.

This is Midge, not to be mistaken with the redhead 
Top Model Summer using the same face sculpt.
Her head has been shrunken, the eyelashes 
trimmed and the eyes repainted.

Imagine, a non-poseable (based on today's standards) dressed doll cost the same as a dressed articulated doll with an extra outfit! The latter is obviously a better deal. I believe that this kind of change won't be possible if the consumers like me didn't unite to make a statement about how the dolls are being sold here. I'm very grateful to my fellow consumers who have made this possible.

I thought that Raquelle and Midge would sell out earlier than Teresa and Summer. It was a surprise to see the Summer doll out of stock within a week. (I checked 5 toy stores.) I realized that a local online seller offered the dolls and a lot of people ordered Raquelle and Midge. Maybe that is why less people are buying the two since the collectors already have them, thanks to the online seller.

I didn't buy from the online seller. Not buying from online sellers is a form of protest for Mattel to improve their distribution system. It is also a form of protest to the online scalpers. Imagine if Mattel allows other companies to distribute Barbies locally. The prices will be more competitive. Maybe Mattel's sales will even increase. Who knows? It was a good decision not to buy from the online seller since the local toy store price is cheaper than the online seller price (although this is not always the case because of the monopoly I've mentioned).

After buying Raquelle, I decided to buy Midge. I thought it was brilliant to introduce an old character to the series to attract older fans to the show and eventually the doll line. Yes, I have a number of dolls with the Steffie mold but this is my first redhead for that mold. I also like her sense of style. Her's is very classic which is a good contrast to Raquelle's offbeat fashion sense. I like her in the Barbie Style doll line, too but I only need one of this doll so I'm not sure if I will still but it. Heck, I'm not even sure if it will be made available here.

These are just small changes and it can easily revert to the old price scheme as they please. We should realize that these companies (Mattel and their distributors) earn huge profits from us. (If they don't earn that much, I guess they wouldn't be in this business but they are here and they do earn that much.) It is the consumers who eventually pay their wages. It is important that we make them serve us the way we want them to.

The new Allan and Midge

Spread the word. You're the boss.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

The Girl Takes After Me

She cannot be the opposite of Barbie. She wants to be Barbie and thinks she can be better at it. It's like those collector-turned-doll-critics (like me) who think they can do a better job than those who work at Mattel. More than the love-hate relationship with Barbie, Raquelle takes a lot more after me.



That is why of all the cast of Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse, I relate best with Rrrraquelle. I like her even before the series, as a Fashionista. She wears less pink, for starters.

I may react the same way if I lived in a world where people blindly follow Barbie just because she is Barbie. Remember that "trashy" fashion people there starting copying? I will do my darnest to expose why Barbie shouldn't have that authority. Just look at how she can't hold a job for too long, 136 jobs in 55 years!

Enough about trash talking Barbie. A lot of people have written books on it, anyways. Let's talk about Raquelle.

She's pretty. Usually, she's the prettiest in the doll line she belongs to. I like her character. She is no goody two shoe. I like her style. I like that although she is not specified to be of Asian descent, she can be made to look like one. I was wondering how she would look with a close mouth. I was surprise that they released her with one and an uneven smile for added character.

That smile perfectly conveys how I feel about a lot of things.

As much as I like Raquelle, I cannot take her big head and big eyes. I have to shrink her head and repaint her eyes to enjoy her. The series Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse may not be "The MostPopular Girls in School", but it is funny in their own way. It gave the doll I love more character than what I usually come up with and now I love her more.

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Kira's Comeback Care of Carlyle

One item from this year's National Barbie Convention piqued my interest. It was not a doll but a sketch for the 3rd Global Glamour Barbie. I first saw it from this site.

The dress on the sketch has an undeniably Filipino flavor, specifically the sleeves of the Philippine terno. When I zoomed in, I read the word "Philippines". (I can't read the other words above it.) Now, that is the dress the first DOTW Philippines should have had!

More details on the doll was provided by a Mattel employee, Carlyle, in Flickr. Below is a portion of the screen shot from that site. It looks like it is his design. Good job!


The Kira face sculpt will be used for Mutya, the third Global Glamour Barbie! When I said that Mattel is deaf to our feedback, of course I was exaggerating. Somehow, the ideas on my old blog entry made its way to Mattel.

 OOAK Kira I did

It's too early for me to be excited over a sketch. There are a lot of factors I'd like to consider before buying a doll. Two of them have been satisfied by the sketch but there are more.
  • Dress (check)
  • Face sculpt (check)
  • Facial screening (uggh!)
  • Skin tone (check)
  • Articulation (meh)
  • Price tag (naah)
___________

24Nov2014 Update:
I've made up my mind. I'm not getting the Mutya Barbie.

27Jan2015 Update:
This is my first impression from the publicity photos.
 

Friday, July 18, 2014

Mattel: A Slow Learner

Once again, Mattel sales fall by 9% for the second quarter of 2014. One would think that they have learned enough from the last quarter. The decrease is partly due to the sales performance of Barbie products which is down by 15% compared to last year. This is the biggest decline for Barbie since mid-2009 according to this article.

Even though Mattel tried to improve the sales by giving discounts every now and then, buyers were a lot more wiser! I don't know how buyers feel that the dolls were being offered a certain price and then be offered a lower price after a month or so. If I were the buyer, I would feel like a fool! Why can't they offer the dolls at the lower price right away?

Even at a lower price, the sales did not improve. It is safe to say that the increase in price alone is not the issue. Buyers want certain innovations and a level of quality before they will buy at a given price. The doll community has been filled with a lot of whining regarding the degrading quality of the newer Barbie dolls. A lot has been too tired of whining since the toy company is not really showing any sign that they are attuned to the demands of the adult consumers.

As much as I want to echo the bright ideas the whiny collectors (like me) have been voicing out, I still think it is futile. The ideas have been posted out there. It's not my job to sum it all up for Mattel. Plus, what's in it for me?

What else? A higher price tag for the dolls I want to buy.