Only in China would Barbie become a mixture of high end luxury fashion & a lifestyle concept. For most of us, Barbie is something we believe we leave behind in childhood however the reality is that those Barbie Doll fantasies continue with us. Anyone who has been around a bride, particularly those from less affluent backgrounds, see the Barbie doll fantasy coming to the fore. The dreams we had as little girls of how our lives would turn out, colour our thinking through adulthood.
But that’s not really what Barbie in China is about, its very simply about taking that whole Barbie mythology & ethos & applying it to adult – or perhaps to the little girl in each of us. Its about that image of perfection and about meeting our Ken, having a perfect wedding, having children etc etc (excuse the lapse in thinking, I was too busy throwing up).
The new Barbie concept store in Shanghai is an exceptionally subtle blend of many marketing & design techniques brought together to feed that fantasy – in an incredibly unsubtle way.
Taking a walkthrough some of the elements of this new retail environment……
The outside of the building was designed to reflect elements of the Barbie packaging. The facade is made of two layers : moulded polycarbonate interior panels and flat exterior glass planels printed with w lattice frit pattern. The two layers reinforce each other visually and interact dynamically through reflection, shadow & distortion. they create a glipse of the fantasy which lay within, without being literal or graphic – after all it is a fantasy.
When you walk in, you’re enveloped by curvey, pearlescent surfaces which lead to a pink escalator tube – transporting you from your normal life up into a dream world.
The escalator actually takes you up two floors to the double height main sales floor area. There is pre-recorded giggling echoing in your ears.
The first floor (accessible from the main floor) is actually the Barbie Spa. But we’ll look at the main floor first.
Once you come out of the pink tube escalator you emerge onto this space.
Light, starkly bright with pink of course the iconic colour. The mirrored looking area in the middle is actually not mirrors, its a transparent polycarbonate staircase filled with showcased Barbie dolls.
The spiral staircase covers three stories – the main retail areas – and is enclosed by eight hundred Barbie dolls.
The main purpose of this floor is for women (aka not children). It contains women’s fashion, cosmetics, Barbie Couture (for you to wear, not the doll), skincare, Tshirts – you name it. There are over 700 couture dresses and even a Vera Wang wedding gown perfect for your Barbie wedding.
The doll floor (dolls, designer doll gallery, doll accessories & books). The Barbie Design Center is where you can design your own Barbie doll. There are also Barbie Career Dolls (I also wanted a Consultant Barbie!), a vast array of every Barbie Doll known to man on sale in the Doll area, and of course (why not) a library & book sale area. The “library” includes little tables where your kids can occupy themselves while you go off and do the real Barbie shopping.
Next is the girls floor (girls fashion, shoes & accessories) are on the next floor. The Barbie Fashion Stage, also on this floor, is where girls take part in a real runway show. This is also the floor where the real girls clothes are (as opposed to the girl within). There is a full range of fashion, sportswear, shoes & giftwear. There’s even a Photobooth (a very upmarket area called that anyway) where your little Barbie Girl can have her photo taken in different clothes she’s tried on.
The Barbie Cafe is on the top floor, where all the Barbies & sit down & have a cup of coffee with their Ken’s. There you can have Barbie Afternoon Tea (with little cakes), a Barbie-tini (pink with a Barbie imprinted on top) or try the Barbie Gellato (pink of course).
If the stress of finding your Ken just gets too much, you can pop back down to the Barbie Spa for a relaxing massage, facial or get your nails done.
So is it working …… hell, yeah
Architect/Interior Designer: Slade Architecture
Location: Shanghai, China
Store Concept Development and Creative Direction:BIG/ Ogilvy & Mather
Construction area: 2,790 sqm
Photographs: Iwan Baan & http://www.barbieshanghai.com
