Abstract
Barbie in a wheelchair has heralded a new era in the magical world of Barbie. Mattel, one of the biggest toy manufacturers, has redefined the way Barbie has been portrayed to the world by introducing their new Black Barbie in a wheelchair. After years of innovation and trial and errors, it has proved that Barbie is not just a make-believe plaything or a representation of a singular aspect of beauty standards. These dolls should be relevant and wholesome when it comes to creating a bridge between customers and the brand itself. Mattel realized not too long ago the significance of inclusion, and now it has ended up hoisting a sensation in all of the United States and globally through the Internet and social media such as Twitter. The IDIC (Identify, Differentiate, Interact and Customize) model, which is an effective customer relationship management (CRM) tool, has been deployed by Mattel to demonstrate how Mattel cares for its customers. Mattel’s customer centrism, devotion towards innovation and inclusiveness are the key aspects which has rewarded the company with a whole new spectrum of acceptance from minority groups with a smile on their faces.
Introduction
In 2019, children’s favourite toy Barbie’s manufacturer Mattel, Inc. 1
Mattel, Inc. is an American multinational toy-manufacturing company. It was founded in 1945. Its headquarters is in El Segundo, California. It is a children’s entertainment company. It designs and produces toys and consumer products worldwide. Under the Barbie brand, Mattel offers dolls and accessories, content, gaming and lifestyle products for children.
Market for Disabled Dolls
Toy-making companies can make a great impact on children if they make dolls resembling those around them. There are many children with disabilities in society. Therefore, it is important for children to see toys and dolls with disabilities. In the doll market, some toy-making companies are already bringing new customized dolls with disabilities.
Makies, the British toymaker has released a line of customized dolls with disabilities. They got inspiration from the success of the social media campaign ‘Toy Like Me’(Toylikeme.org, 2019). It encouraged parents of children with disabilities to customize their toys for a more realistic look. Makies used 3D printing technology to make dolls which have a disability. People shared photographs of realistic dolls which are made at home. Shortly after, the ‘Toy Like Me’ campaign became successful. Following the success of the ‘Toy Like Me’ campaign, Makies released a new line of dolls. Makies made things such as hearing aids, walking aids, facial birthmarks and even guide dogs for the dolls by using 3D printing technology. Makies had worked on creating a character in a wheelchair as well as custom-designed dolls for children.
Vermont Teddy Bear Company (VTBC) presents ‘Limb Loss, Limb Difference’ teddy bears. These teddy bears have a different appearance. To make those bears, VTBC worked with the Amputee Coalition. The company did so to facilitate support and acceptance as well as to celebrate people’s differences. It has brought a little more inclusion to their stuffed animals with the bears as part of their ‘Bears That Care’ line (vermontteddybear.com, 2019).
The American Girl (an American line of dolls released by Pleasant Company, which is a subsidiary of Mattel) company produced several accessories for modification of its American Girls dolls to have different abilities and conditions. A sporty red wheelchair, arm crutches, leg braces, allergy-free lunch sets and a diabetes care kit are included in the accessories. American Girl offered this wide variety of accessories reflecting a range of disabilities.
The online toy store Lime Tree Kids is a lifestyle shop for children. Its toys are for children with special needs and those whose needs are special. Its Baby Dolls with Down syndrome represent children with the congenital condition. These dolls having moveable arms and legs and soft skin are a source of fun to play with. These dolls are available with blonde or brunette hair and male or female presenting gender. These dolls have Down syndrome in their facial features. It is a beautiful way to teach inclusion to children as well as to allow children with Down syndrome to have a relatable doll to play with. Each doll is 40 cm tall, has different hair colours and comes dressed in the cutest outfits. Besides, they also posses an innocent smile and soft skin. The dolls can be dressed up in different ways and has movable arms and legs.
Barbie’s New Design
Kim Culmone, Mattel’s vice president of Barbie design, worked with disabled people; the team at Mattel worked with UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital 2
UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital serves children of different ages—from newborns to young adults. It also provides paediatric service for the physical and emotional well-being of those children. UCLA Medical Center is a medium-sized children’s centre. It admits around 150 patients a day. Many services are available to patients and their families; some of the services offered by the hospital are parent and sibling sleep areas, a family resource centre and parent-to-parent support sessions.
Thirteen-year-old Jordan Reeves, a disability activist, who was born without a left forearm, is from Missouri in the United States. She has a prosthetic arm and she is the co-founder of Born Just Right, an organization with a mission to build creative solutions to help kids with physical disabilities. Jordan facilitated the design team for making the prosthetic leg realistic. Being an integral part of the design process, she suggested that Barbie’s prosthetic leg should be removable for a lifelike experience when playing with the dolls.
Barbie Dolls with Disabilities
Mattel has made several attempts to produce a Barbie doll with a disability. This is not the first time Mattel has introduced a doll with a wheelchair. In 1997, the company launched ‘Share-a-Smile Becky’. However, she was not a version of Barbie herself but of another character, a Barbie friend who used a bright pink wheelchair with purple-accented wheels and a backpack hanging on the handles. Becky (she was white) was designed with disability so that the Barbie doll world could reflect the richness and diversity of the real world. Becky, with her fashionable style with pink and purple wheelchair, became a positive role model and showed that disable peopled can still be fashionable and fun. She became an eminent model of a toy that less able kids could relate to. Becky became an instant hit with her shiny pink wheelchair and tiny backpack. In the first two weeks, around 6,000 dolls were sold. Though Becky got huge popularity, Becky’s wheelchair could not fit into the line’s DreamHouse and other accessories. Her wheelchair was too wide that it could not fit through the doorways of the Barbie DreamHouse. Becky then transformed into various other dolls that used wheelchairs such as ‘I’m the school photographer Becky’ followed by ‘Sign Language “I Love You” Becky’ and ‘Paralympic Becky’, according to Studio 360. After getting several redesigns, eventually, Becky was discontinued in 2017, along with Barbie’s efforts to be inclusive (Livesey, 2019). Instead of fixing the problem by making the Barbie world accessible for Becky, Mattel just decided to get rid of ‘Share-a-Smile Becky’ (Public Radio International, 2019).
Becky was discontinued because she did not fit into Barbie’s world, and it was easier to get rid of her than to change everything else. Becky’s discontinuance reflects how people are often imparted to think about disability, in terms of fixing people rather than society. It matters because it repeats a way of thinking that when people are different they are problematic, instead of a realization that it is unrealistic to have a world where everyone’s indifferent.
Additionally, more than 20 years and 100 variations of the doll later, the US$476 million doll line is making another attempt at introducing a Barbie with a physical disability. However, Mattel took too long to recover itself from the 1997 failure of the Becky doll. Expanding Mattel’s doll collection will broaden the definition of beautiful. With the new Barbie in a wheelchair, future generations of children with disabilities will be able to accept what makes them different rather than feeling embarrassed. Being disabled profoundly shapes a person’s experiences. A wheelchair plays a key role in many people’s personal success. This is predominantly important because many people with disabilities are still being treated with discrimination. They are often marginalized in the society where it is much easier to forget about their presence and struggles. The practice for people with disabilities to be put into institutions and asylums is still ongoing but to a lesser extent.
People with disabilities deserve much more, but they commonly receive the tail-end of the diversity stick. So, when everyone is represented, it creates a culture of acceptance, rather than the one of negligence and polarization. Mattel is trying to create such culture.
Impression of New Dolls
New Barbie dolls are like a long-awaited dream for many girls. Mattel sees the latest additions as the fulfilment of what Barbie fans want. Customers are very excited after the announcement came from Mattel in February 2019. They are sharing their views and thoughts online through social media. Not only the children but also the adults are waiting to buy the new dolls. People are expecting that Barbie will inspire a new level of confidence and creativity in people with disabilities. For many, Barbie in a wheelchair and Barbie with removable prosthetic leg will be their first experience to play with in their life. Mattel has long heard the criticism that the Barbie dolls set unrealistic expectations of a woman’s physical appearance (body size measurements) and promotes sexist career choices (Forbes.com, 2019). Complaints about lack of diversity, unrealistic body images and not representing girls of all sizes, skin colours and hair colours led Mattel to make changes and rebrand Barbie. New dolls can take away social stigmas surrounding disabilities and show kids that there is ‘nothing wrong’ with people who have them. There is a rising awareness about the requirement to make toys representative for children with disabilities. Mattel’s huge step will break down stereotypes developed at a young age that will help remove disgraces unpleasantly impacting people with disabilities.
Mattel created an optimistic impression for girls to become what they want. The newest Barbies in the Fashionistas collection are an additional step in the brand’s mission for better representation and empowerment of young women. It is a continuation of Mattel’s mission to show all girls that they have limitless potential and their ambition need not end. Mattel will maintain doing so in the future as well. Differentiating the Barbie line and making a truthful representation of the children who play with the dolls are big innovations in the toy company’s efforts. Over the years, Barbie has broadened her career choices and has been an astronaut, surgeon, air force pilot, Olympic athlete, President of the United States and many others. Currently, the world famous doll is more inclusive than ever before as she is now also in a wheelchair and wears a removable prosthetic device. As Mattel designs Barbie for the next generation, it is focused on evolving to remain the most diverse doll line in the marketplace. Barbie was a fashion doll making an outstanding impression on social values by assigning characteristics of female independence with her multitude of accessories and a fanciful fashionable lifestyle before it began representing disability. However, ‘Barbie in a wheelchair’ is Mattel’s one of the best additions to children’s toys. New dolls sitting in a wheelchair and wearing a removable prosthetic leg can also be a fashionable, stylish and playful source of entertainment to the children.
Release of Black Barbie
Mattel officially launched Black Barbie with natural hair, also in a wheelchair in June after announcing it in the New York Toy Fair in February 2019. The new doll as the first black Barbie using a wheelchair is featured in Mattel’s Fashionista line. It became a part of the company’s continuing effort to produce more inclusive toys. With the intention to protect girls or women from feeling excluded, designers currently have taken initiatives by creating a black Barbie with natural hair in a wheelchair (Krause, 2019). After the new product just released in the United States, people started sharing their opinions, talking about it on social media, for example, Twitter. Many people praised Barbie’s hair. Luckily, the new and upgraded item comes with its own ramp, as a result, Barbie does not have to worry about getting into her house. Her wheelchair is also as close to the real thing as possible.
The wheelchair is modelled ‘after a real, rigid frame wheelchair and doll included has an articulated made-to-move body to easily fit in the wheelchair’. The wheelchair accessory accommodates all body types offered—tall, curvy and original. A ramp accessory is included to fit with the Barbie Estate items. This black Barbie has become an Internet sensation. The chair’s wheels really roll; children can just give it a push to get it moving or set the brake to keep it in place. Barbie doll has 22 ‘joints’ across her neck, upper arms, elbows, wrists, torso, hips, upper legs, knees and ankles so she can comfortably sit and move around in her wheelchair. A white top with colourful stripes and cut-out sleeves paired with faded denim pants are right on trend, especially, when accessorized with her silvery sunglasses, yellow watch and white sneakers. A ramp is included so that Barbie doll can easily get in and out of the Barbie DreamHouse (sold separately, subject to availability). However, this doll cannot stand or roll alone. The black Barbie has flat shoes and articulated ankles or flat feet. Colours and decorations may vary (Gillett, 2019).
This new Barbie has succeeded to receive wholesome affirmative response. People have pointed out that the wheelchair is made without handles, the style is more casual and does not look like those commonly found in hospitals. Social media reactions to the new Barbie are tremendously positive. Though the white Becky became the favourite of many fans of Barbie when it was released, this black Barbie is also expected to earn popularity among the Barbie fans.
Understanding Mattel’s Business Strategy
Mattel’s business approach has been playing it by the ear for a very long time ever since they first kicked off with their Becky in a wheelchair back in the 1990s. The improvisation had been delayed for around two decades when they finally released their Barbie in a wheelchair with more upgraded features and a strong message to thin up the line between races. Mattel’s business strategy, solely driven by the customer-centric factors, has played a well-defined role to stick with their innovativeness and new modifications to create more relevance.
Instrumenting IDIC Model
The IDIC model, which stands for the four stages—Identify, Differentiate, Interact and finally, Customize—was developed by the Peppers and Rogers (2004). In order to tackle the different kinds of issues and refinements in a cross-disciplinary way, this model had been developed. It is an important and effective customer relationship management (CRM) tool which has been manoeuvred by many large business conglomerates and Mattel is no exception to that.
Identify
For Mattel, it has always been about the customers and to give them a sense of fulfilment whether through their primary buyers (parents/guardians) or their end users (children). Either way, their purchasing pattern changes with the vogue of time. Besides, it is the shift in the preference and choices of the buyers and users, who ardently look for a strong association between themselves and the product; hence, the dolls have had their constant transitions over the years from one dimension of panorama to another. This is solely because Mattel has been studying its customers along with their buying pattern, emerging preference and keeping track of their sensibilities towards diversity and ethnicity. This is the first step, which involves identifying the orthodox or unorthodox needs and wants by scrutinizing the existing and probable customer portfolio and customer profiles of a company. Mattel identified that there is a huge chunk of market yet untapped, who are either racially distinguished, ethnically discerned or are met with physical deformity. Thus, catering to one of these markets can not only beget a whole other customer portfolio but also project a strong associative meaning to its CRM.
Differentiate
This strategy eyeballs two basic criteria of value and need of customers. Mattel being a toy-seller has more scope of creating a difference in both the social and global contexts, emphasizing the need and value than any other kind of merchandising. Now, this scope of creating differences means the revaluation of customers based on their current and lifetime value, to therefore, streamline profit. This differentiation strategy led Mattel to realize that these segments of minority and race, deserved a completely different treatment if Mattel wanted to have an enhanced relationship with them in the long run. Mattel categorized this segment to prioritize their special needs and wants in a more customized way and to exhibit their own reflection into the dolls by giving the dolls a perfect finishing touch.
Interact
This is the third stage in which the actual CRM plans are being debuted after all the work is done behind the scenes. Mattel created a flamboyant impression during its first announcement in February 2019. ‘We’re excited to expand our offerings as the most diverse and inclusive doll line in the world. Shop the new Fashionistas this fall!’ Mattel’s vice president Kim Culmone told Teen Vogue, ‘We’re going to be introducing a doll in a wheelchair and a doll representing physical disabilities. She has a prosthetic limb’. This created a stormy sensation in the social media, especially in Twitter, where the adults, surprisingly, seemed even more enthusiastic about the new debut than the children. Mattel focuses on its unique and promising advertisements and public relation activities directly regulated and conducted by the CEO and the vice president themselves on the podium to address these product lines so that it creates an everlasting hullabaloo among the customers and the non-customers as well. Not to mention that Mattel also collaborated with a young disability activist to make its upgrades flawless. This collaboration also resulted in a very strong association where children with physical deformities found this profoundly motivating.
Customize
‘Inclusion’ is described as customizing service in the best way possible. Paradoxical as it may sound as to how customizing requires improvising and adapting to different changes accordingly or that it varies from one customer to another. Conversely, inclusion is the consideration of bringing in different grounds of customers under one umbrella. That is what Mattel did with its different product lines, and with this Barbie in Wheelchair, not only did it bring the racial integrity in the spotlight but also the fact about disability. By introducing its intention towards inclusion of every possible demo out there, Mattel gave customization a new definition, which has defined its relationship with its customers in a whole new dimension. Besides, this need for inclusion was first rejected due to the emergence of protective measures against perceived discrimination whereas the matter of disability shares the utmost sensitivity. Thus, the other toy companies have also joined the race for creating more connectivity with the customers. Mattel, however, dived much deeper to redefine customization and renounced the conventional strategy to focus on something that matters more. Mattel’s reciprocity in CRM indeed makes it stand for more than what a toy manufacturer usually strives for.
Moving Forward
Mattel can enliven and foster its brand. The company is projecting an optimistic image being socially responsive; however, by doing so, the company can make a name for itself and achieve financial profitability. Moreover, Mattel’s attempt of being active in the community helps employee engagement with potential customers. Building interactions with customers is the cornerstone of Mattel’s strategy. Having a social bonding can impact the buying decisions of customers. Customers are eagerly waiting to buy new dolls. They are admiring Barbie’s new look. Their huge appreciation is a positive sign which may boost the company’s sales as a consequence. Developing a warm and respectful relationship with customers can lead to increased sales and profits as well.
On the other hand, many employees want to feel the way that they are part of something bigger. Mattel’s concern for the disabled children may empower employees to leverage the corporate resources to do well and when they get behind an initiative, the results can be amazing for Mattel. Furthermore, being part of a strategy can boost employee morale and lead to superior productivity in the workforce. Mattel’s team that worked for the new makeover of the upcoming dolls will develop a sense of pride. They feel the joy and privilege of being part of a big change. They know what it means to be a part of Barbie, holistically speaking. It will also be reflected in terms of maintaining sustainable relationships with customers and fellow employees. Mattel’s new step in rejuvenating its relationship with its customers may help improve the brand’s image. Mattel can attract positive publicity, retain top talent and improve relationships with customers. The benefits can include customer retention, improved sales and financial success.
Right at the beginning of the new decade, inclusiveness has been marked by its expansion into an upcoming doll line. This finally, may be the year when Barbie dolls with beauty and diversity will appear for everyone! ‘For 2020, Barbie is continuing the journey to represent global diversity and inclusivity in the fashion doll aisle by showcasing a multi-dimensional view of beauty and fashion’, a spokesperson for Mattel told (CBS News, 2020). Toxic beauty is very much obsolete now and what is rather more blistering is inclusion. Involving each and every body type, shape, colour of skin, syndrome and disability or deformity is really helping Mattel to stand out with a deeper cause. There have already been official announcements in the Fashionistas Line, and these dolls possess more diversity than ever before and some include vitiligo, no hair, a golden prosthetic leg, a wheelchair, dark skin, coloured hair and a Ken doll with shoulder-length hair. This strategic tendency has led to their sky-rocketing profits and it is also capable of matching its own timeline. Mattel really knows how to create a meaningful bond with its customers and push it towards the future with a greater momentum. Pressing the issue of ‘no one is perfect’ in the society and that ‘different is unique and should be embraced’, Mattel is putting smiles on its customer’s faces all over the world and beyond.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
