An Open Letter To Mr. Isaac Larian, President And C.E.O. Of MGA Entertainment, Inc.

By: Robyn Barnette

Dear Mr. Isaac Larian and the many wonderful people at MGA Entertainment, Inc.:

When your company introduced the Bratz dolls in 2001, nobody ever anticipated that this product would become the outstanding phenomenon it is today. Your company did not just create a product — it created a revolution that would change the toy industry for many years and decades to come. What MGA Entertainment, Inc. has created with Bratz is nothing short of incredible, and it is impossible for me to describe to you how your product has changed my life and the lives of millions of children around the world. Had it not been for Mr. Carter Bryant's creation while working for that "other" toy company, and had it not been for Paula Treantafelles, your company would not be the successful company it is today. Moreover, your company would not be the successful company it is today without us, the Bratz faithful, supporting the ONLY girls with a passion for fashion and the original four girls that started it all: Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha, and Jade.

Unfortunately, Mr. Larian, the franchise that started out as the "next big thing" when Mr. Bryant introduced his concept drawings to you now suddenly finds itself at a crossroads. 2007 was, without a doubt, the worst year ever in the Bratz franchise. Many Bratz fans such as myself do not want to relive it ever again. The domino effect began when the Bratz Fashion Pixiez were released. This collection could have been one of the greatest Bratz collections ever released in the company's history. Sadly, when you succumbed to the pressure of one retailer's offense to one color, you also succumbed to the pressure of an entire fanbase's offense to the collection itself. The Bratz Fashion Pixiez was considered by many in the Bratz community as one of the most shockingly insulting and disappointing Bratz collections of all time. It was as though MGA Entertainment, Inc. did not try hard enough to create a product that would elevate the company to a standard no other company — not even that "other" toy company — would surpass. What's more, many of the other Bratz collections that MGA Entertainment, Inc. released in 2007 were just as bad: Bratz Hot Summer Dayz, Bratz Fashion Show, and Bratz Star Singerz, among others. These collections were painful to look at whenever I went to the Bratz aisles at all the major retailers I visited. It was not just a matter of a dedicated Bratz fan like myself comparing these newer Bratz collections to the older and previously released collections — it was the fraudulent quality that had many in the Bratz community throwing up their hands in disgust and simply giving up on being Bratz fans. I can understand the newer Bratz fans being enticed by Bratz Star Singerz, Bratz Movie Starz, Bratz Magic Make-Up, Bratz Birthday 3rd Edition, etc. But in reality, THAT is all they're enjoying....and forgetting everything that came before it — everything that was ten times better than what's on store shelves now.

Of course, not every Bratz collection released in 2007 was a disappointment: You had a few bright spots with Bratz Flower Girlz, a collection that emphasized the importance of global warming and helping the environment. And the Bratz Kidz collections such as Horseback Fun and Winter Vacation demonstrated your creativity and innovation — two attributes that are the pillars of MGA Entertainment, Inc.'s strength as a company. The Bratz Kidz collections are among my most favorite, and I look forward to seeing your company release many more Bratz Kidz collections in the future.

Still, that doesn't take away the fact that 2007 was a horrendous year for Bratz. The Bratz Fashion Pixiez debacle was only a harbinger of things to come: In April 2007, 4Kids.TV canceled the "Bratz" animated television series. This television series made watching Saturday morning cartoons fun again. I always looked forward to watching the adventures of Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha, and Jade scooping stories for their teen magazine. It was an exciting experience to wake up each Saturday morning and tune in to see how these girls with a passion for fashion competed against Your Thing magazine and its (self-proclaimed) "reigning queen of fashion" Burdine Maxwell to see which magazine would get the story first. What I really loved the most about the animated television series was the computer animation. Mike Young Productions knew the vision they wanted to accomplish with "Bratz," and they went above and beyond everyone's expectations. I will never understand why MGA Entertainment, Inc. entered an agreement with 4Kids Entertainment, Inc., an organization that abhorred your Bratz franchise from the very beginning, to broadcast this animated television series. What 4Kids Entertainment, Inc. did to "Bratz" was nothing short of appalling — and all because they support that "other" toy company.

Months later, MGA Entertainment, Inc. and Lions Gate Entertainment, Inc. released the first live-action theatrical motion picture "Bratz: The Movie." I was expecting this movie to be dumb and silly fun, and it was. At the same time, the movie also contained a positive message about being yourself and standing out, and I got a lot more out of this movie than I thought I would. I found "Bratz: The Movie" to be very enjoyable, but that sentiment was not shared by most movie critics who saw the movie: "Bratz: The Movie" was slammed with negative reviews all around and grossed a paltry $9.6 million during its entire theatrical run in the United States. In addition, and perhaps as an added insult to injury, a Regal Cinemas movie theater complex near where I live yanked the movie four days after it was released.

Shortly after that, Bratz Magazine ceased publication in the United States. Publisher and distributor Titan Magazines officially ceased publication of Bratz Magazine on August 7, 2007, citing that the company was not making money with the magazine. Conventionally, when sales of a magazine are bad, there is no other option except to stop publishing any further issues and cease publication altogether. As of this writing, there are no plans to restart a new version of Bratz Magazine with a different publication and distribution company, since many of them are staying away from a product they consider sleazy.

As the President and CEO of MGA Entertainment, Inc., Mr. Larian, what do you have to say about what happened to Bratz in 2007? What is there to say?

It is time to get real about Bratz. This franchise is dying, and many Bratz fans are frustrated to the point where they're abandoning Bratz altogether — some of them going back to Barbie. People are unhappy with Bratz. REALLY unhappy, to the point of tears. While your company has been working hard to put a positive perspective on Bratz, it certainly cannot keep you from seeing at least some of the sales figures of your Bratz collections. Have any of your employees at MGA Entertainment, Inc. visited the Bratz aisles at any of the major retailers? Do you know what they see? They see stacks of Bratz dolls sitting on store shelves collecting dust. Do they even care about Bratz? Do YOU even care? I think that many of your designers do not give a damn about Bratz anymore, because they don't feel they have to — they just want to work at MGA Entertainment, Inc. for the money. As if that is not enough, your company has made numerous changes to Bratz to make the brand more family-friendly and wholesome. Have these changes worked? Absolutely not: Parents are still refusing to purchase Bratz dolls for their children. The changes your company has made to Bratz have not worked for parents, and they especially have not worked for the millions of other consumers who purchase your products everyday — including me.

Here's the solution: Reintroduce what made Bratz successful prior to 2007. Think of it as what happened with Crystal Pepsi in 1992: Crystal Pepsi was an innovative idea — in theory. PepsiCo, Inc. claimed that because Crystal Pepsi was "clear," it was somehow more effective, more advanced, and, well, better. In the end, however, Crystal Pepsi looked like a poor imitation of 7UP and tasted nothing like Pepsi. The idea flopped, and PepsiCo, Inc. went back to the drawing board and brought the original Pepsi back. You most certainly can do the same thing with your Bratz franchise, can't you? Instead of walking into the Bratz showroom at Toy Fair 2008/2009/2010/20?? and announcing to everyone in attendance something like, "Bratz is no longer the future for MGA Entertainment," we can help Bratz always and forever be the future for MGA Entertainment, Inc. and save this franchise from sinking into the depths of extinction. A brief list of suggestions: