SHANGHAI — Barbie moved out of her Shanghai dream house Monday after Mattel closed the only store in China dedicated to its bestselling doll.
Mattel didn’t cite a reason for shutting the six-story Barbie Shanghai, though it had lowered the outlet’s sales targets by at least 30 percent since the March 2009 opening.
The toymaker, based in El Segundo, Calif., joins Best Buy in shutting stores in China, even after retail sales in the world’s fastest-growing major economy surged last year. Mattel lowered the sales targets of the store in central Shanghai at least three times since opening it.
The Barbie store opened in Shanghai on Barbie’s 50th anniversary with a restaurant and spa, and a flood of pink lights at night. Customers could buy dolls, outfits by “Sex and the City” costume designer Patricia Field, beauty treatments and “Bitini” cocktails. Children could pretend to model clothes on a fashion runway and design customized Barbie dolls. Bloomberg News; AP file photo
