Barbie

Barbie is a fashion doll created by American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy company Mattel and launched in 1959. The toy is the figurehead of the Barbie brand that includes a range of fashion dolls and accessories. Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for over six decades. Mattel has sold over a billion Barbie dolls, making it the company's largest and most profitable line.^[1] The brand has expanded into a multimedia franchise since the late 1980s, including video games, computer-animated films, and a live-action film.

Barbie and her male counterpart, Ken, have been described as the two most popular dolls in the world.^[2] Since its launch, Barbie has transformed the toy business in affluent communities globally by becoming a vehicle for the sale of related merchandise (accessories, clothes, friends and relatives of Barbie, etc.). Writing for Journal of Popular Culture in 1977, Don Richard Cox noted that Barbie has a significant impact on social values by conveying characteristics of female independence, and with her multitude of accessories, an idealized upscale lifestyle that can be shared with affluent friends.^[3]

Sales of Barbie dolls declined sharply from 2014 to 2016.^[1] In 2020, Mattel sold $1.35 billion worth of Barbie dolls and accessories, and this was their best sales growth in two decades. This is an increase from the $950 million the brand sold during 2017.^[4] According to MarketWatch, the release of the 2023 film Barbie is expected to create "significant growth" for the brand until at least 2030.^[5] As well as reinvigorated sales, the release of the film has triggered a fashion trend known as "Barbiecore".^[6]

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