BARBIE' TEAMS WITH WORKING WOMAN MAGAZINE TO ENCOURAGE GIRLS

BARBIE' TEAMS WITH WORKING WOMAN MAGAZINE
AND GIRLS INCORPORATED® TO ENCOURAGE GIRLS
TO CELEBRATE THEIR DREAMS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 5, 1999

New Working Woman

Working Woman magazine, Girls Incorporated and special winners of the Barbie “Celebrate Your Dreams” contest will gather to discuss what girls are dreaming about for their futures. Three special young entrepreneurial girls won the contest by explaining what they hope to do when they grow up. The girls will each be presented with a $10,000 bond that may be used for college expenses and be introduced to a specially selected female mentor in their chosen field. Working Woman Barbie doll not only sends a message to girls that they can be anything they aspire to, the CD-ROM that comes in the doll's package actually helps them strive for their goals with fun activities that inspire career thinking.

“For the past 25 years Working Woman has been the number-one magazine written for today's female leaders, achievers, corporate executives and entrepreneurs,” said Gretchen M. Tibbits, director MC3 Ventures, MacDonald Communications. “Working Woman Barbie reflects the goals, hopes, and realities of a new generation of young girls. We are excited to join forces with Mattel and Girls Incorporated in inspiring future businesswomen with the success stories of the women featured in Working Woman.”

The event will be held at Eleni's Cookies on Tuesday, October 5, 1999. The location was inspired by the career goal that one of the Barbie “Celebrate Your Dreams” winners submitted. The five-year-old hopes to own her own bakery one day and says she will achieve her dream by going to school, learning to read and cook, and working to save money, as well as having “Mommy work with me so I don't burn myself.” The three winners supplied explanations of their career aspirations and were selected based on the creativity, detail, and approach of the entry. The entrants were broken into age groups of 3–5 years, 6–8 years and 9–14 years.

The aspiring baker will meet her new mentor, Cheryl Krueger-Horn, founder, president and CEO of Cheryl & CO., a $27-million gourmet food and gift company, and winner of Working Woman magazine's 1999 Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence. The other two girls will also be introduced to mentors in their chosen fields. All three girls will be helped by their new mentors to use the Working Woman Barbie doll CD-ROM on laptops and printers that will be on hand. The software will allow them to create letterhead and business cards for their fledgling companies and gain a better understanding of money management.

“Economic literacy for girls has been a priority for Girls Incorporated since our research indicated that girls feel much less confident about money management than boys,” said Isabel Carter Stewart, National Executive Director of Girls Inc. “We are delighted to work with Mattel, Inc. and Working Woman magazine to bring the Working Woman Barbie doll CD-ROM to girls throughout the country. Girls can imagine and create their own businesses and use the Girls Inc. activities on the CD-ROM to learn basic skills necessary for future economic independence.”

The new Working Woman Barbie doll shows girls that they can be anything they dream of by encompassing the world of businesswomen. She comes with a CD-ROM that includes articles specially written by editors at Working Woman magazine that pertain to girls' career aspirations, software enabling girls to create their own letterhead and business cards, and Girls Incorporated activities to help pre-teens understand and experience money management. The aspirational doll comes with accessories befitting a busy businesswoman, including a play laptop, coffee mug and cell phone and will say phrases like “Teamwork is Fun!” and “I have e-mail.” In addition, her smart, gray business suit transforms into a glamorous red evening ensemble when her workday is done. Working Woman Barbie doll is available now in toy stores everywhere and is for girls age three and above. Approximate retail price is $30.

“This latest aspirational Barbie doll is one of the most exciting dolls we have ever produced. With more than 75 careers under her belt, Barbie has done it all. With Working Woman Barbie doll, we hope to continue to inspire girls, sending the message that it doesn't matter what their career goal is, they can make it happen,” said Anne Parducci, Senior Vice President, Barbie Marketing. “With the help of Working Woman and Girls Incorporated, we have created a CD-ROM that is not only fun and entertaining for girls, but helps them start to understand what it takes to start your own business.”

Since her creation in 1959 as a paper-doll-inspired friend, the Barbie doll has achieved the title of the most popular fashion doll ever created. She's held that title by adapting her look, lifestyle, and fashions to meet changing times. In 1998, the Barbie doll line posted sales of $1.7 billion and more than one-billion Barbie dolls (and family members) have been sold since 1959.

Mattel, Inc. is a worldwide leader in design, manufacture, and marketing of family products. With headquarters in El Segundo, California, Mattel has offices and facilities in 36 countries and markets its products in more than 150 nations throughout the world.

MacDonald Communications Corporation, a communications and media concern based in New York, is dedicated to providing intelligent products and services to affluent, professional, and entrepreneurial women. Through its family of integrated businesses, including Working Woman and Working Mother magazines, MC2 conferences, the Businesswomen's Research Institute (BRI), the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), and MC3 Ventures, MCC influences more than 6-million women per month.

Since its inception in 1945, Girls Inc., formerly Girls Clubs of America, has inspired millions of girls to be strong, smart, and bold(SM) young women. The organization, which currently serves 350,000 young people a year in over 1,000 sites across the country, has made a commitment to extend its reach by the year 2002 to touch the lives of one million annually.

Barbie and associated trademarks are owned by Mattel, Inc.

Working Woman is a trademark of MacDonald Communications Corporation

Girls Incorporated is federally registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Strong, Smart and Bold is a service mark of Girls Inc.®