Flavas

Flavas is an American line of fashion dolls created by Mattel in 2003. They are multi-ethnic and have an urban, hip hop style with "bling-bling" jewellery and stick-on tattoos, described as "ghetto-fabulous" by Newsweek. They were designed to appeal to tweens (8- to 12-year-olds) and compete with the widely successful Bratz dolls. They were marketed as "reality-based" and "authentic" and have more points of articulation than traditional fashion dolls for more expressive posing. Flavas were criticized for being stereotypical, bad role models, and a misrepresentation of hip hop culture. Their multiculturalism was described as positive, and British analysts expected their "risqué nature" to translate to high sales. But following sales that were described as "disastrous" they were discontinued within a year.

Doll design

The six Flavas dolls, Kiyoni Brown, Happy D, Tika, Liam, P. Bo, and Tre, are ethnically diverse and portray Hispanic, black and white people. They have an urban sensibility and are dressed in hip hop fashions. Their accessories include ghetto blasters, cell phones, "bling-bling" jewellery and stick-on tattoos. The packaging, which doubles as a doll stand, is designed as a wall painted with graffiti. Instructions on the box say: "Pull my street stand from the box, so I have a spot to hang out."Newsweek described them as "edgy" and "ghetto-fabulous". Marketed with a focus on self-expression and individuality, the Flavas dolls have more points of articulation than traditional fashion dolls. This allows for a wider range of posing and, according to Mattel, to express more "attitude". Each doll has a unique face sculpt and a different height, ranging from 10 inches to 11.5 inches. They were each released in two different styles and each style was packaged with two different outfits. The complex jointing and individual molds made the Flavas dolls more difficult to manufacture than most other fashion dolls.