GOTY Gabriela: Hellos and Goodbyes

Finally photos of Gabriela in her meet box are surfacing!

First the fantastic "Hello!"

Gabriela is almost here! Photo is shared with permission by Hello Savings!  Hello Savings is sponsoring a Gabriela Give Away and more official information can be found in the links but in brief:

Hello Savings give away of a free GOTY Gabriella doll will run Thur, Dec. the 15th, through Sunday, Jan the 1st at 10 pm EST. This contest is open to US Residents ONLY. Must be 18 years of age or older. Must be a fan of Hello Savings. The winner will be announced no later than Monday, January the 2nd. This giveaway promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed it administered by, or associated with, Facebook.

Poppets & Posies is in no way affiliated with Hello Savings other than through a shared interest in American Girl doll fandom!

Now for the Goodbye: the classic doll box is going away! 

New Coke vs Classic Coke?

Gabriela is the first of presumably many more AG dolls to be offered in the radical new redesigned box that DOES NOT OPEN in two pieces. Meaning, get our your scissors or knives, you will have to destroy some portion of the box in order to rescue Gabriela from the box.

The head-to-toe window pane aside and the more graphical design of the box aside--I am personally not thrilled with American Girl ditching the classic AG doll box of two pieces that lift and separate for a box that will be more or less destroyed upon unpacking of the doll.

I can imagine a whole host of reasons for the new box construction:

*Cheaper to manufacture

*More enticing for Costco and Kohl type stores display settings

*Hermetically sealed boxes means less lost accessories (books, hair bands or barrettes, etc.)

*Doll boxes no longer opened to handle/inspect individual dolls in store

*Returns of played with dolls discouraged (box destroyed)

Used with permission of Hello Savings. Note the cover has been carefully sliced off to reveal the interior of the box--cover was not lifted but peeled off and left the raw jagged brown cardboard edges of the front lip exposed.

I see zero advantages to the consumers. I am not insisting that AG stay with models of sales that are not successful, but I feel like if this new box style is a permanent shift that it does burst a magical bubble that gives these dolls that certain special experience of unboxing. Some in the fandom are calling this new box style the "Barbie" box and not in a complimentary way.

Think of Apple products offered in shrink wrap plastic rather than the gorgeous white boxes. Still an excellent product but such a move would also mess with the mystique and brand loyalty of many of their customers. Apparently AG is banking on the hunch that they will still be able to draw in more profits from their new approach--but it does feel like something special has passed.

Will AG offer the rumored BeForever Felicity in this new "Barbie" box style? Or will AG use the classic box style to set apart certain exclusive doll series? Or perhaps AG will try to sell their old classic  box as a stand alone "accessory" to make an extra buck.

Is it just a box? Or is it a New Coke fiasco in the making?