Mattel's Successful Marketing Strategy Drives Impressive Barbie Sales

Mattel's sales have experienced a positive growth for the first time in a year, thanks to the tremendous success of the Margot Robbie-fronted Barbie film released this summer. According to the chairman and CEO Ynon Kreiz, Barbie's worldwide sales have witnessed a remarkable 16% increase, surging from $519.6m (£430m) in the previous year to $605.1m (£500.8m) this quarter. In North America, Barbie sales have soared by 26%.

Kreiz commended the impact of the Barbie film on the company's third quarter performance. "Our results were positively influenced by the overwhelming success of the Barbie movie, which emerged as a worldwide cultural sensation and a significant achievement for Mattel," he stated.

Additionally, Mattel's CFO, Anthony DiSilvestro, commended the company's strong marketing strategies for bolstering sales of the Barbie doll.

In Q3 2022, Mattel's overall sales increased by 9% to $1.9 billion (£1.6 billion), marking the first quarter of reported sales growth for the company. The Barbie film was considered a significant risk for Mattel, as it was rumored that the business invested over $100 million (£83 million) in its marketing efforts.

Kreiz expressed his belief that Mattel's marketing expertise was not fully recognized prior to the release of the Barbie film. He stated, "We are a creative and innovative company, with expertise in creating demand. We utilize our capabilities and retail reach to effectively promote and market the movie. We collaborated with Warner Brothers, who did a commendable job, but we took it a step further, turning it into a cultural phenomenon."

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This aligns with the statement made by Lisa McKnight, the global head of Barbie and dolls portfolio at Mattel, in an interview with Our Website this summer: "It was our intention all along to avoid having a live-action film solely serve as an advertisement for toys."

Although the increase in sales is encouraging, Mattel is keeping its full-year forecast unchanged, indicating that it may not anticipate a significant boost in sales during the fourth quarter from the Barbie movie.

“We are operating in a challenging macroeconomic environment with higher volatility that may impact consumer demand,” said DiSilvestro.