The “Happy Holiday” Barbie series began in 1988 and ended in 1998, although Mattel did not intend for this to be a series. The 1988 “Happy Holidays” Barbie doll was strictly marketed as part of a market test, or pilot project. The 1988 “Happy Holidays” Barbie doll was at that time the first vinyl Barbie doll ever produced in the $20 price range.
John Amerman, who took over as Mattel President and CEO in 1986, wanted to expand the Barbie doll line beyond the $10 price range. He brought this up at a staff meeting and recalled, “Everybody’s face turned white. They held their heads for a while then went to the easel with pointers and graphs and explained all the reasons why you couldn’t do that. It all came down to being afraid of the retail buyer. I told our head of design and development to come up with the most elegant Barbie ever. I told the packaging people to develop the best package they could conceive. A week later, they gave me the hard costs. I said, ‘Geez, we’re gonna have to sell her for $19.99.’ And that’s how Holiday Barbie was born”.
John Amerman was cautious and shipped only 300,000 units in October of 1988. But at many stores, they didn’t even reach the shelves. The clerks that worked in the stores were buying whole cases and selling them for up to $50 each.
Many avid Barbie doll collectors have been able to complete their entire collection…except for this doll. It wasn’t too many years ago that the 1998 “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll was retailing on the secondary market for $600 and up if you could find her NRFB (never removed from box) and if the box was in mint condition.
The highly sought after 1988 Holiday Barbie wore a bright red, sparkly dress, had long, flowing blonde hair and came displayed in a red box. Today on the secondary market, the 1988 Holiday Barbie brings approximately $200. So now is the time to pick her up at an auction or toy show if you are missing this doll from your collection.
In 1989, collectors eagerly awaited the release of the new “Happy Holidays” Barbie doll to the series. Mattel doubled production over the 1988 doll release, and shipped over 600,000 Holiday Barbie dolls that retailed for $21.99. The 1989 Holiday Barbie doll has brought upwards of $300 on the secondary market over the years. Today, you can pick her up for $150 NRFB. The 1989 doll wore a fresh white dress trimmed with fur. The packaging was a white box that today, the plastic on many of these boxes has turned yellow.
The 1991 “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll is still today among the favorites for doll collectors. Her gown was made of luscious, velvet green and on the secondary market she commands a higher price than that of the 1990 “Happy Holiday” doll.
The company continued to expand the “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll line each year and as demand increased, Mattel continued to increase production. In 1995, The “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll for that year was in extremely high demand. Retailers could not keep these dolls in stock and Mattel announced a voucher program campaign to give those who missed out a second chance to purchase the doll around April 1996. The 1995 Holiday Barbie, which retailed for around $34, was bringing upwards of $100 on the secondary market at that time because parents wanted to give these dolls as Christmas presents.
By 1997, the “Happy Holidays” Barbie changed to a brunette, quantities were over produced, and retailers were practically giving these away after the holidays to get quantities off of their shelves. On the secondary market today, you can pick up a 1997 “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll for as low as $5.
Mattel ended the 10-year successful reign of the “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll series in 1998, where the doll retailed for $36. Did Mattel end the series due to the unpopularity of the 1997 Holiday Barbie doll, or did they intend all along to only run the series for 10 years? I guess we will probably never know the answer to that one.
In 1999, Mattel came out with the “Millennium Barbie” that was a hit among collectors and this doll went for as much as $85 on the secondary market.
The year 2000 brought the new “Celebration Holiday” Barbie series that ran until 2003. From 2004 to the present, the series has just been called “Holiday Barbie”. Bob Mackie was the designer for the 2005 and 2006 “Holiday Barbie” doll.
I still purchase the Holiday Barbie doll every year. It is a tradition that I will continue to enjoy forever. In case you are wondering…the only doll I am missing from 1988 to the present is the 1988 “Happy Holiday” Barbie, but I will have one!
The “Happy Holiday” Barbie series began in 1988 and ended in 1998, although Mattel did not intend for this to be a series. The 1988 “Happy Holidays” Barbie doll was strictly marketed as part of a market test, or pilot project. The 1988 “Happy Holidays” Barbie doll was at that time the first vinyl Barbie doll ever produced in the $20 price range.
John Amerman, who took over as Mattel President and CEO in 1986, wanted to expand the Barbie doll line beyond the $10 price range. He brought this up at a staff meeting and recalled, “Everybody’s face turned white. They held their heads for a while then went to the easel with pointers and graphs and explained all the reasons why you couldn’t do that. It all came down to being afraid of the retail buyer. I told our head of design and development to come up with the most elegant Barbie ever. I told the packaging people to develop the best package they could conceive. A week later, they gave me the hard costs. I said, ‘Geez, we’re gonna have to sell her for $19.99.’ And that’s how Holiday Barbie was born”.
John Amerman was cautious and shipped only 300,000 units in October of 1988. But at many stores, they didn’t even reach the shelves. The clerks that worked in the stores were buying whole cases and selling them for up to $50 each.
Many avid Barbie doll collectors have been able to complete their entire collection…except for this doll. It wasn’t too many years ago that the 1998 “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll was retailing on the secondary market for $600 and up if you could find her NRFB (never removed from box) and if the box was in mint condition.
The highly sought after 1988 Holiday Barbie wore a bright red, sparkly dress, had long, flowing blonde hair and came displayed in a red box. Today on the secondary market, the 1988 Holiday Barbie brings approximately $200. So now is the time to pick her up at an auction or toy show if you are missing this doll from your collection.
In 1989, collectors eagerly awaited the release of the new “Happy Holidays” Barbie doll to the series. Mattel shipped doubled production over the 1988 doll release, and shipped over 600,000 Holiday Barbie dolls that retailed for $21.99. The 1989 Holiday Barbie doll has brought upwards of $300 on the secondary market over the years. Today, you can pick her up for $150 NRFB. The 1989 doll wore a fresh white dress trimmed with fur. The packaging was a white box that today, the plastic on many of these boxes has turned yellow.
The 1991 “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll is still today among the favorites for doll collectors. Her gown was made of luscious, velvet green and on the secondary market she commands a higher price than that of the 1990 “Happy Holiday” doll.
The company continued to expand the “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll line each year and as demand increased, Mattel continued to increase production. In 1995, The “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll for that year was in extremely high demand. Retailers could not keep these dolls in stock and Mattel announced a voucher program campaign to give those who missed out a second chance to purchase the doll around April 1996. The 1995 Holiday Barbie, which retailed for around $34, was bringing upwards of $100 on the secondary market at that time because parents wanted to give these dolls as Christmas presents.
By 1997, the “Happy Holidays” Barbie changed to a brunette, quantities were over produced, and retailers were practically giving these away after the holidays to get quantities off of their shelves. On the secondary market today, you can pick up a 1997 “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll for as low as $5.
Mattel ended the 10-year successful reign of the “Happy Holiday” Barbie doll series in 1998, where the doll retailed for $36. Did Mattel end the series due to the unpopularity of the 1997 Holiday Barbie doll, or did they intend all along to only run the series for 10 years? I guess we will probably never know the answer to that one.
In 1999, Mattel came out with the “Millennium Barbie” that was a hit among collectors and this doll went for as much as $85 on the secondary market.
The year 2000 brought the new “Celebration Holiday” Barbie series that ran until 2003. From 2004 to the present, the series has just been called “Holiday Barbie”. Bob Mackie was the designer for the 2005 and 2006 “Holiday Barbie” doll.
I still purchase the Holiday Barbie doll every year. It is a tradition that I will continue to enjoy forever. In case you are wondering…the only doll I am missing from 1988 to the present is the 1988 “Happy Holiday” Barbie, but I will have one!
