芭比的公司，想做电影和游戏

Mattel changed bosses this year, and the new boss comes from the media business.

Mattel is the company that makes Barbie dolls, and Hot Wheels cars and Fisher-Price for babies are its too.

I had a Barbie when I was little too, and it's still in a cupboard at my mom's place.

First, where it stands now.

This year from July to September, compared with the same period last year, Hot Wheels rose 6 percent, Barbie fell 10 percent and Fisher-Price fell 15 percent.

Of the three brands, only the little cars are growing.

The company then lowered its forecast for the full year.

It is reported that its market value has already fallen by about a fifth this year.

That's when the new boss came.

He took over in October, as both chairman and chief executive.

His background has almost nothing to do with toys.

Before, he ran a magazine company, and before that, he ran a company for listening to music online.

The previous boss, though, went to a film company.

One went from media into toys, one went from toys toward films. Put the two paths side by side and it's quite interesting.

It is reported that on his first results call he said what drew him to Mattel was its famous brands.

He said these brands could become films, games and live events.

In other words, he wants to turn a toy company into an entertainment company.

Barbie has gone down this road once.

The 2023 film Barbie was the top-grossing film in the world that year.

I went to the cinema to see it too.

But an analyst says that after the film, the dolls only sold well for a while, and the bigger buzz was adults dressing in pink to go to the film.

Look at this year's figure: Barbie is down 10 percent again.

On the games side, a rival already has a success story.

In 2023, Hasbro turned Monopoly into a mobile game, and it was very successful.

Actually, Mattel has its own mobile-game studio too, run together with NetEase since 2018.

So to make games, it doesn't have to start from zero.

The new boss wanting to move into entertainment also has another pressure behind it.

An analyst says the whole toy business is shrinking, because fewer children are born, and children put down toys earlier to look at screens.

It is reported that what is holding up sales now is actually adults buying toys for themselves: little cars, building bricks and cards.

That 6 percent for Hot Wheels, I guess it has to do with these adults.

And there are costs.

It is reported that oil prices have gone up, plastic has become more expensive with them, and parents look harder at prices when they buy.

So in front of the new boss there are really two things.

One is to turn names like Barbie and Hot Wheels into films and games.

The other is to first stop the toys from falling any further.

He only came in October.

That Barbie in the cupboard at my mom's place, I've never had the heart to throw it away.