Epicenter
From Malibu to Man Bun Ken, Mattel’s makeover.
In her six decades on toy shelves, the iconic Barbie doll has changed her look more times than Cher and Madonna combined. This time, it’s her male companion, Ken, that’s getting the makeover.
On Tuesday, Mattel introduced 15 variations on the classic Ken doll, created by Ruth and Elliot Handler and introduced in 1961. The new Kens will come in three body types — “slim, broad and original” — seven skin tones and nine hairstyles.
“We are redefining what a Barbie or Ken doll looks like to this generation,” said Lisa McKnight, senior vice president and general manager, Barbie, in a news release. McKnight also said the variety of Kens “allows girls to further personalize the role they want him to play in Barbie’s world.”
The new Kens ($9.99) are a decidedly more fashion-forward take on the doll’s traditional Malibu preppy look: New hairstyles include cornrows and a “man bun” that’s been trending on social media. Ken’s apparel updates include skinny jeans, designer-inspired high-top sneakers, garments that explore ethnic prints, pattern and flannel, as well as well as chunky eyewear.
Bicoastal fashion designer Richie Rich, who famously dressed Paris Hilton as Barbie in his 2005 Heatherette runway show at New York Fashion Week, says that it’s about time Ken caught up to the times.
“The world now in general is safer for all genres of people,” says Rich, who also created a collection that same year called “Living Dolls” where female and male models stepped out of Barbie packaging. “Gay boys, and boys in general, can play with dolls now with more freedom. Ken needed an update.”
When it comes to Mattel’s fashion choices for Ken, Rich says he could easily picture “so many of these Kens in the clubs and bars. With gender fluidity in fashion accepted so much now, I think it’s the perfect change.”
The new takes on Ken for the Fashionistas Barbie line are part of an attempt Mattel is making to address a sales slump in the past year. According to the company, sales for the brand fell 13 percent to $123 million in the first quarter of 2017, from $141 million the year before. The expanded racial and body diversity may also be in reaction to decades of criticism that Barbies are too physically idealized and predominantly Caucasian. Last year, Mattel also introduced new body and skin tones for Barbie herself. The company has called the new Fashionistas collection “the most diverse fashion doll line in the marketplace.”
Rich says the expanded diversity of Kens is refreshing. “Not all guys are twinks; guys have different body types and dress differently and have different skin tones, too.”
Barbie and Ken have been the stars of several animated films and series (including cameos in Pixar’s “Toy Story” franchise) in addition to their ubiquity in the toy world. In 2004, Mattel famously announced that Barbie and Ken were splitting up romantically but would remain friends. They were officially recoupled for Valentine’s Day 2011. Throughout the years, Ken has gone through different iterations, including adjustments to his physique and hair, which has alternated among molded plastic, felt and rooted locks. Among the most famous variations was 1993’s Earring Magic Ken that featured pierced ears, highlighted hair and a purple mesh shirt that many compared to gay club styles of the era. Earring Magic Ken almost immediately gained a cult following that remains to this day.
“The runway isn’t the most realistic place, and neither is Barbieland,” Rich says. “It’s a fantasy world, and now Ken can play dress-up, too.”
With that in mind, Style critiqued Ken’s newly released looks.