????盡管新興市場(chǎng)有著龐大的年輕人口，但美泰（Mattel）和孩之寶（Hasbro）等美國(guó)玩具公司尚未把這些國(guó)家變成巨大的盈利中心。

????但他們已經(jīng)學(xué)到了一些東西。例如，芭比娃娃在中國(guó)的首秀有點(diǎn)冷清，但歐睿信息咨詢(xún)公司（Euromonitor）在今年春季發(fā)布的報(bào)告顯示，“美泰正悄悄享受著（芭比娃娃）在印度的強(qiáng)勁表現(xiàn)所帶來(lái)的回報(bào)”。

????她在那里為何如此熱銷(xiāo)？首先，美泰在印度推出了以好萊塢明星卡特莉娜?卡芙為原型的芭比娃娃。這是“I Can Be”系列中的一個(gè)。在美國(guó)，“I Can Be”系列芭比娃娃的職業(yè)包括護(hù)士、音樂(lè)教師和總統(tǒng)。在印度，卡特莉娜?卡芙玩偶堪稱(chēng)吸引當(dāng)?shù)厥袌?chǎng)的代表作。

????美泰不久前才從中國(guó)鎩羽而歸。2009年，美泰在上海開(kāi)設(shè)了首個(gè)芭比娃娃商店（六層樓都擺滿(mǎn)了各類(lèi)芭比娃娃商品），但反響并不熱烈。芭比娃娃的性感造型令中國(guó)父母?jìng)兺鴧s步。晨星公司（Morningstar）分析師杰米?卡茨說(shuō)，雖然美泰的這個(gè)芭比娃娃商店銷(xiāo)售清淡，但公司最后應(yīng)該會(huì)在中國(guó)再試一次?！皯{借適當(dāng)?shù)姆b以及某些不同的面部特征或產(chǎn)品，或許芭比娃娃能夠毫不費(fèi)力地卷土重來(lái)?！?/p>

????美泰確實(shí)打算卷土重來(lái)?！白鳛槭澜缟献畲蟮耐婢吖?，美泰擁有適應(yīng)國(guó)際市場(chǎng)并藉此發(fā)展壯大的良好記錄?！泵捞┌l(fā)言人艾倫?希洛維茨說(shuō)，“近些年來(lái)，我們的國(guó)際業(yè)務(wù)在總體業(yè)務(wù)中的占比從35%提高到了50%。我們打算進(jìn)一步擴(kuò)大這個(gè)數(shù)字。”

?????到目前為止，玩具公司還在努力。5月15日，歐睿信息咨詢(xún)公司的玩具和游戲分析師羅伯特?波特發(fā)布了題為《玩具在中國(guó)：水，到處是水，但一滴都喝不到？》（Toys in China -- Water, Water Everywhere but Not a Drop to Drink?）的報(bào)告。該報(bào)告指出，中國(guó)市場(chǎng)將在今后5年增長(zhǎng)近47億美元。但波特說(shuō)，沒(méi)有哪家公司的市場(chǎng)份額超過(guò)5%。

????對(duì)玩具公司來(lái)說(shuō)，中國(guó)市場(chǎng)難以滲透。部分原因在于美國(guó)玩具很昂貴。美國(guó)父母往往擁有更多的可支配收入花在孩子身上。“在這些國(guó)家里，有很多人都生活貧困。”晨星公司的卡茨說(shuō)，“他們的錢(qián)必須用來(lái)買(mǎi)生活必需品而不是玩具?！?/p>

????以前，美泰曾將其產(chǎn)品的高昂價(jià)格作為其優(yōu)勢(shì)的體現(xiàn)。“西方市場(chǎng)的高檔和新興市場(chǎng)的高檔大為不同?！睔W睿信息咨詢(xún)公司的行業(yè)分析師吉德里烏斯?道約塔斯說(shuō)。例如，美泰在美國(guó)只是一家普通的玩具公司，但在拉丁美洲卻把自己塑造為高檔品牌。

????“他們向有錢(qián)的父母?jìng)兺其N(xiāo)，然后其他所有人都想買(mǎi)他們的東西?！笨ù恼f(shuō)，“于是，他們就成了玩具界的露露檸檬（Lululemon，美國(guó)瑜伽服飾熱門(mén)品牌——譯注）?！钡侥壳盀橹梗@個(gè)策略很有效。歐睿信息咨詢(xún)公司在今年春季發(fā)布的那份報(bào)告顯示，“對(duì)美泰來(lái)說(shuō)，拉丁美洲已經(jīng)成為價(jià)值10億美元的市場(chǎng)，并且每年都在變得更加重要?！?/p>

????也許高檔策略在亞洲也將奏效，但正如美泰從芭比娃娃在中國(guó)的失利中學(xué)到的那樣，每個(gè)市場(chǎng)都有各自的特點(diǎn)。目前，高檔玩具仍然是小眾市場(chǎng)。在新興市場(chǎng)，“當(dāng)人們擁有更多的錢(qián)來(lái)花銷(xiāo)時(shí)，他們將選擇購(gòu)買(mǎi)高檔的嬰兒食品品牌”，道約塔斯說(shuō)。與玩具相比，“嬰兒食品或許更像是必需品?！保ㄘ?cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：千牛絮

????While emerging markets tend to have big, young populations, American toy companies such as Mattel and Hasbro have yet to turn them into large profit centers.

????They have, however, learned a few things. Barbie, for example, had a bit of a botched debut in China, but, according to a spring report from Euromonitor, "Mattel has been quietly enjoying the rewards of a strong performance by [Barbie] in India."

????Why does she sell so well there? For one thing, in India, Mattel (MAT) released a Barbie modeled after popular Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif. The doll was part of a line called "I Can Be." In America, "I Can Be" Barbie occupations include nurses, music teachers, and the President. In India, the Katrina Kaif doll represents a role model that appeals to the local market.

????Mattel had just come off a flub in China. In 2009, it opened the first Barbie store in Shanghai -- six floors worth of Barbie paraphernalia -- but the concept didn't take. Chinese parents were turned off by what they saw as the over-sexualization of the doll. Though Mattel's Barbie complex was a miss, the company should eventually have another shot at China, says Jaime Katz, an analyst at Morningstar. "Probably Barbie can make a very easy comeback with the right attire, maybe some different features or products."

????Mattel certainly plans a comeback. "As the world's largest toy company, Mattel has a proven track record of adapting and thriving in the global marketplace," Mattel spokesperson Alan Hilowitz says. "In recent years our international business shifted from 35% of our total business to 50% of our business today, and we plan to grow that number."

????Toy companies have struggled, so far, to crack the promising Chinese market. On May 15, Euromonitor toys and games analyst Robert Porter, published a report called "Toys in China -- Water, Water Everywhere but Not a Drop to Drink?" According to the report, the market is set to grow by nearly $4.7 billion over the next five years. No one company, Porter says, has more than 5% market share.

????China has been tough for toy companies to penetrate, in part, because U.S. toys are expensive. American parents tend to have much more discretionary income to spend on their children. "There are a lot of people living in poverty in some of these countries," says Morningstar's Katz. "They're still going to need to pay for necessities rather than toys."

????Mattel has actually used its products' high price point to its advantage in the past. "What's premium in the Western market and what's premium in emerging markets is very different," says Giedrius Daujotas, an industry analyst with Euromonitor. Mattel, for example, may be just another toy company in the U.S., but it positions itself as a premium brand in Latin America.

????"They market to wealthy parents, and then everybody else wants to trade up to them," Katz says, "There, they're the Lululemon of toys." So far, the strategy has worked. According to the spring Euromonitor report, "For Mattel, Latin America is already a US$1 billion market and is becoming more important with every year."

????Perhaps the premium strategy will work with Asia, but as Mattel learned from its troubles with Barbie in China, every market has its own quirks. For now, nice toys remain a niche buy. In emerging markets, "when people have more cash to spend, they're choosing to buy premium baby food brands," Daujotas observes. Compared to toys, "baby food may be a bit more of a necessity."