Monday, August 5, 2013

"Cheap" AG Dolls?

I was reading an exchange over Marie Grace and Cecile being considered "cheap" or sale dolls. This troubled me. First of all neither Marie Grace nor Cecile are cheap as they are made the same as any other AG doll and they have a very beautiful NOLA collection. I love their furniture pieces and accessories. But did American Girl do Marie Grace and Cecile a great disservice by offering them 61% off on the Today Show?
It's been rumored girls in the 10-12 age group consider Marie Grace and Cecile to be for poor people or "steal and deal" dolls. I bought both of my dolls full price. The dolls are the exact same quality whether purchased online, from eBay, in stores or on promotion.

Which leads me here..in September 2010 QVC had an American Girl event and sold Lanie, Ivy, Rebbecca and Kaya along with BB. These dolls haven't fallen in value or status. 

I sold both of mine simply because I was downsizing and felt that I could let them go. It wasn't because I thought of them as cheap. I guess because I had a stronger bond with other dolls within my collection.

Other complaints include a dislike in the lack of quality of a few outfits. And the over priced monstrous canopy bed is being compared to a Target quality bed.

What are your thoughts on this idea of "cheap dolls"? Did AG mar Marie Grace and Cecile's reputation with too many sales? (First 25% then 61%)

13 comments:

  1. I think Ag did this line a huge disfavor, discounting them on Jill's deals the way they did. I think they just might have been able to withstand the 25% off after release due to their debut in AG's 25th anniversary year, but anything after than was risky. If the overstock was that bad, AG should have sold them on QVC as they had used that venue with dolls before and the discount should not have been as steep.

    But I don't know if that even is going to solve the issue of Marie Grace. She's a beautiful doll, with beautiful hair, but too much fuss with that wig, and the dress is all wrong. AG ordered way too many of her and she is not moving.

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  2. Really great points here. I love both dolls. I only have Marie Grace and Cecile mini doll but I love Cecile's Dress I have always found the color stunning. Not so sure I like the hairstyle on Marie Grace, I guess both would be great dolls for collectors that don't want to play with the hair. I think that is the biggest issue is the the dolls weren't good for their target market. I think that most of their buyers enjoy playing with the hair and are not adult collectors. Thanks for bringing up this topic. :o) Tara Lynn

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  3. Marie Grace actually has one of the best wigs of all of the dolls. You just have to get over those side bushes and take out that braid. Though I'm sure that was a style girls wore at that time, AG was not smart in using that particular, fussy do for a doll for little girls. Not ALL girls wore their hair that way,and a simpler hair do would have been much smarter. People take one look at the curls that are really distracting and then the braid, and that's it.

    But if undo the braid and hot water or steam it, and the same with the side burns, she has great hair. Or you can just snip those sideburns or leave just tendrils which can be lovely too. All that curl with essentially straight hair makes for a jarring contrast. AG did no favors for MG with that hair style. Doesn't flatter her face at all.

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    1. I love Marie Grace's hairstyle! The little tendrils accentuate her heart shaped, uniquely molded face, and the braid, while cumbersome, is the right balance of fancy and simple.
      Just my opinion.
      Rosie

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  4. Hmmm, interesting thought.
    I stopped watching the Today Show last year as the show in itself lost some credibility with me. So I didn't realize there was a 61% sale on the two dolls.
    Sadly, I think someone who is more familiar with Mattel than with American Girl made some of the decisions with this line and they are trying whatever they can to fix it. But I don't think this particular line is cheap in quality or stature.
    Wasn't a portion of the price going to help areas of NOLA that are still being rebuilt from Katrina?
    What will hurt this portion of Mattel is if they have the dolls in too many places. Beanie Babies and Webkinz both lost market share when they became available at the local super market. They need to stay niche. So have the Girl of the Year reveals on the morning shows (like they did with Oprah that one year), but keep them out of the "steals and deals" feature segments.

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  5. We bought both dolls in the American Girl store at regular price. I think that the discount does hurt the dolls, but they seem to only have been on sale at that price for a few hours. I also think that American Girl hurts its historical doll line by not adding to the collection. More should be done for the historical dolls by Mattel. Even a small release of clothing and accessories for each historical doll twice a year, at a minimum, may help keep interest in these dolls. American Girl doesn't have to make a huge number of this items, but I think that it will help maintain interest in the historicals. When did Rebecca or Kaya last get something? I actually bought the "Today Show" bed when it went to $50. It is wooden and not poorly made, but it takes up a lot of room. Madelon

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  6. I just got Marie Grace for my birthday, I am an adult collector so the hair didn't scar me. I really like this doll, hope to get Cecile in the future. Sorry I missed the sale on the Today Show, not a fan of the show. Having a sale to raise money for an area of America that is in distress because of a disaster should not have a negative impact on these dolls. Hopefully they will do something for NJ, we were hit pretty hard by Sandy & could use a little help rebuilding.

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  7. I think it is snobby to say that a company can't place an item on sale to help raise money for a good cause, and also allow some little girls who other wise couldn't afford this type of doll get one. Also I took my daughter to Denver and paid full price for Marie Grace, and don't regret it. She's a beautiful doll, and probably made from the same factory and assembly lines as all othe other dolls. So you can't argue that she's cheaper than the others. We have several dolls and all of the Mattel dolls look similar to me, you can aruge however that the pleasant company dolls are of higher quality becasue they are well made dolls from Germany. But as far as I'm concerened I"m glad AG isn't so stuck up to think you can't have a sale on a doll.

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    1. You are absolutely right...dolls for poor people? So are you telling me despite American Girls stories about young girls helping others and overcoming challenges like Kit did,you have parents saying certain toys are for "poor people".Say it isn't so that in this day and age children are being taught. to look down on others who dont have as much.At the end of the day the dolls are over priced,all of them.Imagine what a $100 could do for a family.I have Cecile and I was about to sell her until I took her out of her meet dress which I hate and loosened her curls with water..I now dress her as a modern AG a nd I love her..O yeah she is worth about $250 on eBay now MIB.

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  8. I think Marie-Grace and Cecile are awesome! Cecile was my newest doll and I have wanted her for quite a while.

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  9. If they are made the same as other AG dolls and cost the same than how are they cheapened by being on JDS ? And secondly how is being "for poor people" make them less desirable than other dolls? That is horribly simple minded! I think its wonderful that periodically they go on sale otherwise little girls that normally can't afford it can.

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  10. If they are made the same as other AG dolls and cost the same than how are they cheapened by being on JDS ? And secondly how is being "for poor people" make them less desirable than other dolls? That is horribly simple minded! I think its wonderful that periodically they go on sale otherwise little girls that normally can't afford it can.

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  11. Man, I wish I had known about this sale when it happened! I have always liked MarieGrace and Cecile, but as they are not PC characters, they were not on my list of full price AG dolls to save up for. I may buy the minis secondhand (which is what I did with Maryellen), but if I'd known that they were made available at approx. $40ish each, I might have gone for them.
    The only AG doll I own that was bought at full price was Kirsten, whom I got for my sixth birthday. Josefina I don't know, since she was a Christmas present, but I know Samantha and Molly came from doll shows at $65 and $35, respectively. Felicity came from a local consignment store for just $20.
    I am a 15 year old on a budget, so I jump at the chance to save money when shopping for dolls.
    And really, what kind of spoiled snob would come out and SAY that a doll is "for poor people"?! How rude!
    Rosie

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