Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Barbie's 56th birthday party is on ice after Mattel posts sixth consecutive sales slump

The doll's fading appeal weighed on its maker's results.

Joanna Bourke
Friday 17 April 2015 10:49 BST
Comments
Barbie falls out of fashion
Barbie falls out of fashion

Barbie's 56th birthday celebrations are on ice after sales slumped 14 per cent in the first quarter.

The doll's fading appeal weighed on its maker's results. Mattel, which is the world's biggest toymaker, posted its sixth straight quarter of sales declines.

Price-per-share was down eight cents, slightly less than the nine cents predicted by analysts.

Mattel made worldwide gross sales of $146 million (£97.5million) from the once must-have doll in the quarter to the end of March.

Shop sales performed better in the US, partially offsetting a decline in international markets.

The brand faces stiff competition from merchandise linked to Disney's highest-grossing animated movie, Frozen, as well as Lego and gaming products.

In an attempt to revive the doll's popularity, Mattel had fired chief executive Bryan Stockton in January and replaced him with board member Christopher Sinclair. He wants to focus on reducing bureaucracy to improve product innovation.

Sinclair said: “We're starting to see progress with our core brands like Barbie and Fisher-Price, and I am confident we are making the changes necessary to perform better in the future.”

Elsewhere in the group, turnover was up for the Wheels category which includes the Hot Wheels and Matchbox brands.

The firm's net loss also widened more than four-fold to $58.2m (£39m). Group revenue fell 2.5% to $922.7 million- better than analyst forecasts.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in