The Barbie Store has opened in Buenos Aires. It is an immersive experience where girls can shop for clothes, have their nails and hair done, peruse the latest dolls and buy Barbie accessories such as wristwatches, two-way radios and play laptops. And, of course, there are doll, dolls and more dolls.

Entry is free, although admission to the Casa de Barbie, the fantasy-land, is about $10. A manicure runs about $6, hair braiding costs as much as $20, and an elaborate “Barbie Full Style” hairdo can set Mum back $38. And, I have no doubt that every little girls leaves with a doll with the latest outfits as well. What a great concept - sell the dolls and the Barbie experiences as well – what a money spinner!

This concept is Mattel’s first experiment with experiential marketing and unsurprisingly it has been such a success that ‘Barbiedom’ may be replicated globally. But is doesn’t stop there……….

Next year Barbie turns 50 so will it be time for Barbie to slow down and start wearing comfortable shoes? Absolutely not. Mattel Inc. plans to market Barbie as a fashion brand. Mattel Inc. is sponsoring New York’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Week and is also the first toy company to agree a three-year partnership with the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Designers will be creating life sized outfits that reflect the ‘world of Barbie’ for a catwalk show at February’s New York fashion week. “For many young girls, [Barbie is] their first association with fashion and dressing up and changing clothes,” Fern Mallis, London Fashion Week New York. 

So Barbie goes high fashion. It is also rumoured that Mattel want to launch ‘Plastic Smooth’ a make-up line with skin care treatments. The new Barbie fashion collection will go on sale internationally with ‘The House of Barbie’ flagship store planned for Shanghai. Here girls and women will be encouraged, say Mattel to, ‘nibble on truffles, smear on pink-tinted mud masks and shop for clothes for themselves and their dolls’.

 Clearly, for Barbie, life begins at 50.

By Lisa Woodward on November 17th, 2008

Tags: Experiential marketing, New Product Development, Sponsorship

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20 men in a room hugging was the scene last Wednesday night at Harlequins at the Guinness Club Together, ‘Rugby Essentials’, event. Guinness Club Together is a grassroots initiative developed to work with rugby clubs. It is free to join and in exchange for collecting and sending in Guinness keg caps, clubs are able to redeem a host of prizes, merchandise and other sought after items from the online catalogue.

The events are being hosted by Guinness Premiership referees, players and coaches demonstrating training techniques, warm-up drills as well as offering advice on the new and controversial Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) . Wayne Barnes, a Guinness Premiership referee, provided an interactive session on the ELVs. Clubs have now been playing the new laws for a few months and this gave them a chance to discuss how they are being interpreted by both the players and referees. It was the coaching portion of the evening that prompted a group of fully grown men to get up and hug each other as Colin Osborne, the Quins coach, demonstrated the wrestling techniques that the squad use to warm up.  The events have been kept small and intimate to ensure that the attendees get an opportunity to interact and really get what they want out of the session.

I am a rugby fan but last week some of the jargon really took it to the next level and I did wonder at times had it been in a foreign language I might have had more chance of interpreting it! It was really great to see the audience so fully engaged and, at times, mesmerised.

The purpose of the ‘Rugby Essentials’ events is for Guinness to target the core rugby audience and club opinion formers and to engage them in their passion giving them a valuable rugby insight that they can take back to their respective clubs. This is a really great way for Guinness to offer a unique brand experience whilst spreading the wealth of its Premiership sponsorship assets.

The Guinness Club Together Rugby Essential events are travelling around the UK in the next month:

Newcastle Falcons - 29^th October (18.00 – 21.00)
Sale Sharks - 5^th November (18.00 – 21.00)
Northampton Saints - 12^th November (18.00 – 21.00)
Saracens - 19^th November (18.00 – 21.00) 

I would love to be a fly on the flood lights when the guests from last week go back to their clubs and attempt to cajole the players into a bit of a wrestle!

By Lisa Woodward on October 29th, 2008

Tags: Brand marketing, Experiential marketing, Guinness, Guinness Premiership, Rugby, grass roots sport

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If you are a fan of the ‘A’ Team you may remember that the BA Baracus character was scared of flying. Well it seems that this is the case for the real life Mr T. He is starring in the Snickers ‘Get some nuts’ campaign and is flying to the UK for an experiential marketing tour but is terrified to get on a plane over here. His new friends at British Airways have stepped up and are giving him free flights and a ‘fear of flying course’. A BA spokesperson said, ‘We pity the fool that wouldn’t want the honour of flying BA back to the UK.’ Brilliant.

By Lisa Woodward on October 14th, 2008

Tags: Experiential marketing, Public relations

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Five days and counting to the start of the Olympics - Team GB are making final preparations for the biggest few weeks of their lives.

For me the Olympics isn’t just about the big showcase events like the 100m Final - don’t get me wrong I will be on the edge of my seat, biting my nails, as much as the next person - but for me it is the sports that only appear on our radar every four years; judo, fencing, badminton and the mind boggling cycling ’team pursuit’ (where cyclists propel each other around the track). Let’s be honest how many of us had watched a full game of badminton doubles before Gail Emms and Nathan Robertson rocketed onto our screens to win Silver in Athens?

After being lucky enough to have worked with a number of Olympic athletes from all sporting disciplines, during the Easynet Team GB campaign, I have been truly inspired by the stories of challenge, dedication, commitment, preparation and shear courage. One Olympian explained to me that you have to imagine standing on the start line of the biggest thing you have ever wanted to do. Imagine not being able to step over that line because you were too scared of what the consequences might be? And what you realise when you find yourself in that position is that by crossing the line the battle is already half won.  Many people show up but are unable to find the courage to take the biggest risk – that of failure.

I have become rather used to receiving regular updates into my inbox from the British Olympic Association (BOA) as to the selection of teams and individuals, but the ones that really grab my attention are those that inform that an injury resulting in an athlete withdrawing. Reading this it sounds a rather mundane piece of news and it really doesn’t express the devastation of an athlete that has probably trained and dedicated their life for one moment at the Olympic Games only to have to wait another four years for the opportunity.

Team GB deserves our full support to cross over the start line and let’s not forget the athletes that have missed out and hope that they are back in the game for London 2012.

By Lisa Woodward on August 4th, 2008

Tags: Cycling, London 2012, Olympics

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