The U.S. has one of the most racially and ethnically diverse populations on the planet, with 2013 and 2014 census data indicating a continued and substantial growth in overall diversity. In the nation’s most populous state for instance, California, which has more people in it than the 21 least populated states combined, Latinos have become the largest single racial/ethnic group in the state as of this year, making up 39% of inhabitants. In Texas, census data combined with survey data indicates black-owned businesses are growing at a rate faster than the state average for all other businesses over the last decade, according to a report released this June from the BBR (Bureau of Business Research).
From 2002 to 2007, the number of black-owned businesses jumped by 60.5% to 1.9M, with greater access to financing and improved entrepreneurship education driving the trend. Census Bureau projections through 2060 show non-Hispanic white populations peaking around 2024 and then declining by comparison with other segments, as the Hispanic population more than doubles over the same interval and the black population climbs by around 50% to 61.8M. The U.S. is expected to become a majority-minority nation by around 2043 according to Census Bureau projections.
This trend of growing diversity is finding expressions throughout every sector in the economy, with retail goods being a solid barometer of the change. With non-white spending power two years prior pegged around the $1.2T mark and estimates from marketing firm Geoscape that non-white spending power will become the dominant vector around the same 2040’s mark set for the country to become a majority-minority nation, the expressions of diversity in the tastes of retail consumers is following suit. One particularly telling category is the toy, doll and game market, for which IBISWorld’s report out this month indicates revenues of around $5B.
A relatively slow rate of growth in the category over the next decade (annualized rate around 3.2%) will make product differentiation and the ability of brands to hone their focus, increasing direct appeal to consumers from a growingly diverse population, more and more key to overall success. According to leading experts in the field of child development for instance, children can recognize race as young as three years, so it just makes sense that doll makers and consumers alike will continue to implement greater diversity among their product lines, reflecting the increasing ethnic diversity of the country’s population. Toy developers who can successfully capture the imagination and interests of the increasingly diverse U.S. consumer market will thrive, while those companies which fail to evolve will likely see hard times amid tighter margins.
Playing with dolls, still a popular pastime among young girls in the U.S., psychologically allows for a great deal of role expression, with the young girl not only seeing themselves in the doll to some extent, but the doll giving them a sort of template when it comes to fashion, attitude and broader life aspirations. Savvy toy makers who understand the psychology behind playing with dolls have moved to enhance the experience in more recent years, giving the dolls improved, personalized personas, even turning them into role models with their own well defined careers and goals, not just tiny plastic women.
This product differentiation approach of crafting tuned personas for each product offering is most well known in executions like Mattel’s (NASDAQ:MAT) Barbie™, which has a wide variety of extremely well-developed personas on a per product basis. However, as well-developed as the general personas might be, it is difficult for young Black, Latino, or Asian girls to pattern their own aspirations and attitudes after a character which does not look like them.
The Barbie franchise has made some appeals to the changing demographics of the U.S. over the years, stretching back to the introduction of Barbie’s black friend, Christie, in the 1960’s and leading up to a standalone Black version of Barbie in the 80’s, as well as a reboot in the year 2000. Unfortunately, these attempts to appeal to a wider and increasingly more diverse population of young girls have been seen as half-hearted by some consumers, with some even taking offense at the stereotypical nature of variations like the Mexican Barbie product from their Dolls of the World Collection for 2013 and 2014, featuring overly stereotypical garb, like a ruffled dress and mariachi outfit.
Well known doll designer Stacey McBride-Irby, who left Mattel™ after the successful launch of her more realistic “So In Style” line of African-American dolls in 2009, decided to change the doll game forever with the founding of the One World Doll Project, a subsidiary of One World Holdings, Inc. (OTC: OWOO), alongside Trent T. Daniel. Today, the company has a full line of ethnically diverse, fashion-forward dolls called The Prettie Girls!™, each with their own highly crafted persona. Stacey McBride-Irby’s vision to offer consumers well thought out executions of dolls that are not represented on today’s store shelves, has been a recipe for commercial success and increased market traction.
The dolls have won immediate favor among consumers and retailers alike on account of their well-crafted design and highly differentiated concept execution. The Prettie Girls! lineup features a high-school aged African, African-American, Caucasian, Hispanic, and Middle Eastern Indian doll, each with their own fashion sense, career aspirations, extracurricular focus, and other personality traits. These multi-cultural dolls were extremely well received by major big box chain, H-E-B Stores, with the success of an initial foray leading to orders from ten more stores in the chain. A solid showing at the Toy Fair 2014, an online distribution deal inked with Toys”R”Us®, and a subsequent initial order from retail giant Walmart (NYSE:WMT) have all led up to the company’s prepping some 75k units in anticipation of a blowout holiday season, as young girls across the country find dolls on the stores shelves that not only look like them, but are styled for play and filled with soul.
For more information, visit: www.oneworlddolls.com/
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