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The Real Life Barbie

07/07/2017
Associations, Award Shows and Festivals
London, UK
26
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Credits
Ruth Handler watched her daughter Barbara at play with paper dolls, and noticed that she often enjoyed giving them adult roles. At the time, most children's toy dolls were representations of infants. Realizing that there could be a gap in the market, Handler suggested the idea of an adult-bodied doll to her husband Elliot, a co-founder of the Mattel toy company. Sparked by this, Ruth wanted to create a doll that would show little girls they could be anything they wanted to be and that a ‘woman has choices’. On a trip to Europe in 1956, Ruth saw a doll that looked like an adult woman, vastly different from the baby dolls most little girls owned, including Barbara. Ruth was inspired. Three years later, on March 9, 1959, at the American International Toy Fair, Mattel's version, Barbie Millicent Roberts, was born. Barbie quickly became a global icon and consistently remains among the most recognizable personas in the world. This is an exclusive interview recorded for the BCMA panel Back to the Future of Branded Content With Mattel at Lions Entertainment
About The Branded Content Marketing Association

What is the BCMA?

The BCMA is the global industry body for branded content practitioners, run by practitioners, promoting best practice, sharing knowledge and growing the branded content industry.


What do we do?

We promote and grow the branded content industry in partnership with other relevant trade associations and industry groups, sharing best practice, researching, lobbying and managing events relating to our industry. We create the opportunity to connect with the leading experts in the branded content industry.


Why should anyone care?

Branded content is predicted to be at the heart of every marketing strategy, and there is growing evidence that there will be a significant shift in budgets to support it. However, there is still some confusion as to how to do it, who should do it and how it is measured. The BCMA is best placed to define what branded content ‘is’ and what ‘it isn’t’ and measure the effectiveness through its investment in research and proprietary tools.