New Tires, Not Re-Tired

Saturday, October 10, 2009

The Resurgence of Barbie in China




Barbie dolls have always driven me crazy. They lack most all of the features that I believe little girls should seek in role models. As many other feminists have pointed out, they have anatomically unrealistic bodies, they find that “math is hard,” they spend their time trying to make themselves beautiful for Ken, and  they represent the ultimate female consumer.

I consider myself a feminist and have fought for women’s rights in my profession, conducted research on gender equity issues, and tried hard to raise my two daughters to be strong women who also believe in  gender equality. But I must confess that I failed to resist Barbie pressure from at least one of my daughters. And when my youngest was gifted with most of her cousin’s large Barbie collection, discarded because she had outgrown doll play, I allowed her to accept the dolls, the clothes, the jewelry—all of it.  Not my only failure as a mother, but I’m not proud of that weakness.


In recent years I have not thought much about Barbies as my daughters are grown and the topic doesn’t come up much in conversation.  I have noticed in Hong Kong, however, that many of the young women wear clothes out in public that resemble those of Barbie.  However, I was still taken aback when I walked into the shopping center  through which I must pass each morning on my way to school, to find a life-sized display of a Barbie dream house in shades of electric pink. In another part of the mall was a display that included an enormous pink high-heeled shoe with other fashion items displayed prominently. The entire display was labeled “Pretty in Pink.” 

Flagship Store in Shanghai

I had read that Barbie sales in the U.S. were on the decline lately—probably replaced by the newly popular Bratz dolls. So the display surprised me a little. Later I read that Mattell’s sales of Barbie are huge in China these days. On the Mattel website, it introduces Barbie Shanghai as “the first Barbie Worldwide Flagship Store.” Complete with a fashion runway, a place to have a “photo moment” with Barbie and a Barbie Spa (guess that is for the pleasure of  aging Barbie fans). http://www.barbieshanghai.com/en/lobby.html   Opened on Barbie’s 50th birthday in March, the store is a full six stories.  Yes, you read that correctly. SIX stories. For those of us used to locating Barbies in a single aisle in Target, it is hard to imagine what they could possibly put on all those floors. Barbie’s clothes surely don’t take up that much space!

Now  in stores in more than 200 Chinese cities, Barbie is selling  like hotpants, errr.. hotcakes. In one shopping mall in Beijing alone, sales of more than $13,000 a month are being reported. http://www.bjreview.com.cn/culture/txt/2009-03/24/content_187427.htm There is even an online web site, babiwawa.com, for Barbie lovers in China.

Should We Take this Seriously?

A little bewildered by this surge of Barbie fans, I asked a female colleague whether she objected to the Barbie display in the mall or the message it might be sending to young girls. She replied that her daughter had Barbies and that it was fine for little girls to think about being pretty and dressing up as long as they also were taught to work hard in school.  


My university is located in a neighborhood with a lot of private elementary and middle schools. Frequently I see the young girls in their modestly designed uniforms and sensible shoes walking around the mall or on the train platforms. But I know it  won’t be long before they are aspiring to the silk and glitter of the models walking on the harbor or the mannequins in the multiple store windows that fill Hong Kong. How can they resist when the malls are one of the few places where kids can go that is out of the intense heat and offers fun places to hang out and even ice skate.  


In a meeting one day in my office with several young women working on a school project, I remarked about the glitter-covered and intricately designed nails of one of the women. Her face lit up as she described how you could go to mainland China in Shenzhen, just across the border from Hong Kong and get them done for only about $100 HK, while at home the same manicure would cost more like $700.  (That would be about U.S. $13 and  more than U.S. $90 respectively). She left me with the address in case I wanted to invest in designer nails.  Does this mean she followed this fashion because she played with Barbie dolls—or that her school work was less important than her nails? I have no way of knowing as the mid-term, paper and final have yet to be turned in.

Post Script  

There was some redeeming value to the Barbie Pretty in Pink display in Festival Walk. The mall was holding a charity sale in conjunction with the display in cooperation with the Moonlight Foundation Nepal that helps provide free education to poor children in that country.  The recipients of this aid would otherwise join the child labor force of 40,000 in Nepal. Because the supporters of the charity in Hong Kong are “super models,” (Anthony Sandstrom and Jocelyn Luko) they likely thought that the Barbie Dream House display was appropriate.

No comments:

Post a Comment