Dive Brief:
- Mattel’s latest move to push against gender stereotypes with its Barbie doll is to feature a little boy in an ad for the Moschino Barbie – a first for the brand.
- In the spot the boy announces the doll is “fierce” answers a tiny bedazzled mobile phone and hands the device to the doll saying, “It’s for you Moschino Barbie.”
- This summer the Barbie brand underwent an entire digital makeover with a more interactive website, increased social media, and campaigns built around YouTube influencers.
Dive Insight:
A little boy with a faux-hawk hairdo and a proclamation that “Moschino Barbie is so fierce!” has the advertising world talking about the latest Barbie ad for a new doll designed by Moschino.
Featuring the boy, along with the more typical young girls found in Barbie advertising, looks to be part of the Barbie brand reboot. A campaign from September, “Imagine the Possibilities,” included messaging that girls playing with Barbie’s could imagine themselves as coaches, veterinarians and college professors. According to Ace Metrix, the ad scored well for likability (36%), attention (42%) and changing brand perception, for which it rated 35% higher than the average commercial.
The Moschino Barbie ads push back against gender stereotypes associated with the doll. Putting a little boy in a Barbie ad is a first for the brand. The actual limited edition $150 Moschino Barbie doll sold out on Net-a-Porter under an hour, according to Women’s Wear Daily.
