Yesterday Mattel announced that Barbie can now wear flat shoes. They’ve rolled out 23 new Fashionista Barbies featuring 14 different facial looks, eight skin tones, 18 eye colors, 22 hair styles and 23 hair colors. Barbie still scales to a woman with a 36” bust and an 18” waist, so while her back likely aches at night, she is at the very least free to walk around town without blisters.

According to Sheila Shayon at BrandChannel.com, girls have become more interested in super-women and inspirational toys, and Mattel is coming off of its sixth quarter of lagging sales with Barbie. Flat shoes were a last ditch effort. Continue reading