Monday, January 26, 2009

Sasha and Malia Dolls - A Good Business Idea?

I'm sure by now that you've heard of the Sasha and Malia dolls that are being sold by Ty Inc., the company that makes Beanie Babies. The dolls were made as replicas of President Obama's daughters.

First Lady Michelle Obama recently expressed her discontent about this by releasing a statement saying: "We believe it is inappropriate to use young private citizens for marketing purposes."

In response, a spokesman from Ty Inc., released a statement saying that "the dolls are not modeled on the first daughters."

Obviously though, we know that they are lying.

Prior to this, plenty of companies have been profiting off of various forms of Obama paraphernalia - cookies, waffles, t-shirts, hats, watches, gold coins, etc.

Did Ty Inc. go too far by throwing the Obama girls in the mix? Or was this a great business idea?

My personal answer to these questions is: Hmm...I don't know.

5 comments:

  1. I don't know either! But a few things to think about are these. The entire family from the President to the 1st Lady's dresses and then to what the girls are going to wear, what school they go to and which parties they will attend, which dog will they choose have all made this family Super-Celebrities and therefore, unfortunately or fortunately they will not be able to control or have a say on all of the products marketed worldwide. I think that dolls of Black little girls that black kids as well as the rest of the world cold embrace is a VERY Good thing. Making Black Beautiful & Profitable. I do think that the money should go to the family's charity or wherever but they should be compensated.

    Forget Barbie and Bratz. Her comes Sasha and Malia!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ty Inc’s way to cover their intent is ensuring that the dolls don't "look like" the girls. However, the names and launch timing are way too close for this to be a coincidence especially seeing as how they also have other dolls with celebrity namesakes such as Paris and Britney. Britney, they could slide over the plate but how many (non famous) females are named Paris, Sasha or Malia? If they were smart, they’d have named one Natasha b/c that’s really the younger daughter’s full name.

    What's funny is that b/c of Obama; a lot of people are gainfully employed selling merchandise. So he may not even need to start the building project. We can all just get jobs at J. Crew, his Southside barbershop and other places they have or will frequent. Surely, many D.C. based companies will be booming as will many retail outlets (Roca Wear even has an Obama shirt out now) b/c of the Obama’s.
    Laughs: I can't count the number of kiosks that opened up just to sell Obama paraphernalia. Even Wal-Mart is selling Obama gear! There are also door-to-door Obama parties (same as Tupperware) where people sell 2009 calendars, bookmarks and other quirky things they made for a profit. One high profile “celebrity” photographer even partnered with a group to create Obama buttons--not from exclusive pics he owns but from pics that have been circulated in just about every media outlet to date. Even though the buttons are extremely cheesy, the outfit was able to sell them at $10 a pop during the inauguration. They’ve now moved the venture to the web and soliciting via e-mail! I can’t remember the last time I paid $10 for a mass produced souvenir button!!!!

    From a business perspective, MOTIVE is the key in determining if something is right or wrong. Ty Inc's motive was to use the names to sell the dolls for a profit--bottom line! If they instead asked for permission (showing respect for the girls’ age and their parent’s wishes) or tied sales to some cause such as a portion of sales goes towards the college tuition for underprivileged x n such, then kudos, I’d say, sell them off! Otherwise, we’re in for four years of got bills to pay? Then let me show you how to pimp-our-president.

    Following these four easy steps will triple sales and bring in customers by the masses. Act now and you can also get, Pimpin’ the President’s Family n Friends for $19.99 or the Screw a Stimulus Package: How to get Paid while Obama is Office pocket guide for FREE! Quantities are limited so call 800-Pimpin-O now to place your order!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I purchased the domain name:

    http://www.theobamakids.com so that someone unscrupulous couldn't get to it. On the other hand, if someone reputable makes me an offer, I would have to consider it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mr and Mrs Obama are open season targets, but the kids should be left alone. They have to fit in as normal kids among their school mates and young friends, which will be hard enough without being pimped by greedy bussinessmen.

    ReplyDelete
  5. The question is would these dolls would have been created if Sasha and Malia where not first daughters. My answer, no. So, the first lady is correct that these dolls are inappropriate replications of her children.

    ReplyDelete