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Period: to
Introduction
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Only available through a catalog
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Founded by Pleasant Rowland
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Price - $68
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Only 3 dolls available
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Period: to
Growth
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Every kid wanted/had one
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Price - $82
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American Girl Place in Chicago opened
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Mattel bought the brand from the Pleasant Company
-700 Million Dollars -
Americangirl.com launches
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American Girl Place in New York opened
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Price increases to $90
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Other Dolls
-they release baby dolls to appeal to younger audiences
-"Bitty Baby," "Bitty Twins" -
Period: to
Maturity
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released first American Girl movie
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released second American Girl movie
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released third American Girl movie
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opened American Girl Place in Los Angeles
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opened more American Girl Places in Boston and Minneapolis
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Competition
-increase in competition from other dolls
-Target "Our Generation"
-Walmart "My Life As"
-Build a Bear
-La La Loopsy -
YouTube Channel
-Kid Friendly online presence -
Controversial Dolls
-Stopped making dolls with controversial backgrounds
-Fear of backlash
-Discontinuing 4 different dolls - Ruthie, Marie-Grace, Cecile, and Ivy, in order to phase out the Best Friends line
-Cecile one of first two African American dolls and Ivy was (still is) the only historical Asian American doll -
Historical Line of Dolls Rebooted
-"Beforever Dolls"
-got new and updated outfits
-other Dolls retired from collection -
Period: to
Decline
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Evidence of Decline
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Period: to
Sales Decline
-28% in 2017 from previous year (2016)
-8% in 2018 from previous year (2017)
-32% in the first quarter and 22% in the second from their respective quarters in 2019
-19% in second quarter (April, May, and June) of 2022 (lost $7.8 million in sales) -
Period: to
Stores Close
-St. Louis store at the Chesterfield Mall first store to close (2018)
-Store in Natick Massachusetts, Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, and Indigo location at CF Sherway Gardens in Toronto closed (2019)
-Only 12 physical retail stores open now (2023) -
Re-release
-Re-release of the original 6 dolls (Kirsten, Samantha, Molly, Felicity, Addy, and Josefina)
-Was a let down -
Current Price
-Price of a doll now: $115
-69% price increase -
Los Angeles Store
Opened Summer 2023