“We’re bringing fashion back to the fashion doll aisle”: Far Out Toys’ Sharon Zuckerman talks L.U.V.

Sharon, it’s great to connect. Before we dive into your L.U.V. range, what set you on the path to toy design?
I actually went to college for Fashion Design. I went to FIT in New York. After I finished Fashion Design, the Head of Toy Design was looking for a Fashion Design person to join the toy department. They asked me to apply, so I applied – and I got it. I interned at Mattel during my last year of school and then they hired me before I graduated. The rest is history…

Great! Fast forward to today, and Far Out Toys has launched its L.U.V. line of dolls. What inspired the range?
It was born out of the pandemic. Everyone was staying at home, wearing sweatpants and leisurewear – or athleisurewear. As we were emerging from the pandemic, we felt that people wanted to get dressed up, go out and experience life again. So we describe the fashion of L.U.V. as ‘More, more, more!’ There’s lots of colour and great fabrics.

And I have to ask what L.U.V. stands for…
Limitless. Unique. Vibrant. That’s limitless potential, unique perspective and vibrant energy. We like to say we’re bringing fashion back to the fashion doll aisle.

Amazing. And the fashion doll aisle seems – on paper – to be a tough category to innovate in. And it’s fiercely competitive… What does L.U.V. bring to this space?
You have to stand out and be different. When you walk down the doll aisle, everything tends to blend into one. There’s Barbie, there’s Rainbow High… We wanted to stand out and look different. We didn’t want these to be just another doll with a big head!

Fashion dolls have gone away from traditional fashion – they’ve become quite feature-oriented. It was important that our dolls and their fashion looked real; like they’ve just stepped off the runway.

We did different scales. Our tallest doll is nine inches and our shortest is eight and half, and there’s four unique bodies – each with 15 points of articulation. We also did four beautiful unique sculpts to ensure each doll looked different. We also made them different ethnicities – that was important to us. I wanted to play with dolls that looked like me when I was younger, and everyone should be able to find themselves in the doll aisle.

Even the hair is nylon, when usually on a play doll line it’s PP – Polypropylene. We wanted a luxe feel – and buyers were excited to see something different to what they see in other showrooms.

On the fashion front, what went into crafting these looks?
We needed to make sure the fashions felt new and fresh, as well as the hairstyles, the make-up, the shoes… They needed to look as if they’d been on the runway for this past season. I spent a lot of time watching fashion shows and seeing what’s new from different fashion designers. I looked at trends surrounding colours, prints and fabrics – it’s a truly fashion-forward range. I mean, we even did a soft launch for the range at New York Fashion Week!

Working on dolls, there’s always a challenge conveying these insights at this scale. Our dolls are a little smaller than Barbie or Rainbow High, so getting the right type of fabric was key… They needed to fit and drape correctly. It’s certainly not as easy as it looks, but I’ve been doing it a long time, so it has become second nature!

Has Far Out got a history with dolls? Or is this new terrain for the company?
Before I joined, the company did have a line called Glo-Up Girls. It got caught up with Covid so it unfortunately never got the chance it deserved – it was a great doll line. We went in a different direction for L.U.V. and it looks amazing.

Before joining the company, you spent more than 15 years at Mattel working on Barbie. How did your time there shape your approach to doll design?
You couldn’t have a better way to learn about fashion dolls than to work on Barbie. She is the premier line to work on. I started on main line – the play dolls. Our group became Collector Barbie dolls, so I got to work on that with amazing people. Great designers, but also amazing sample makers and modelmakers… High-end designers like Jonathan Adler, amazing brands like Ferrari and NASCAR… It was the best way to learn.

What helps you have ideas? What fuels your creativity?
I get a lot of inspiration when I’m not working. If I’m doing something I enjoy, I’m out shopping or I’ll wake up in the middle of the night thinking: ‘Oh, I’ve just figured that out!’ I run, so that helps to shut my brain off and I get a lot of ideas then. It comes outside of the office, which is where I feel you should get it!

Going back to L.U.V., what does the future look like for the brand?
We have exciting plans. It’s a true fashion doll and we’ve had great feedback from our community and the fans seem to love it – no pun intended!

We did well to get this far without a pun!
Ha! It’s too easy! But yes, we have big plans and are already working on season two. We have high hopes for L.U.V.

Great. Last question! Who is your favourite L.U.V. doll?
I’d say Brooke. I gave her my rocker chic look!

Nice! Thanks again Sharon.

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

More Recent Interview

“Fostering relationships is a pivotal driver of innovation”: Mattel’s Tara McGrath on nurturing strong bonds with inventors

Tara McGrath – Head of Inventor Relations & Innovation at Mattel – on why inventors remain crucial to the company’s ongoing success.

Asmodee’s Julien Sharp on what to do to help games cut through the noise

Julien Sharp – Asmodee’s General Manager for the US – on her origins in the industry, inventor advice and the blurring lines between hobby and mass market games.

“We both have a passion for play”: Industry stalwarts Brian Chapman and Brian Wilk on joining forces as inventors

WilkStudio’s Brian Wilk and Chappy Hour Toys and Games’ Brian ‘Chappy’ Chapman discuss how decades at Hasbro shaped them as inventors.

Game designer Grégory Grard on the inspirations behind In the Footsteps of Darwin

Grégory Grard on how his party game experience shapes how he tackles strategy titles.

Elizabeth Moody and Joshua Addyman from Seven Towns dive into the creation of Hydro Pods

How Soy Sauce, air pressure and real inspiration led to Hasbro’s new range of water toys.

Nextoy’s Robert Fuhrer on representing inventor Yair Shilo and revolutionising sabers with Power Saber

Nextoy’s Robert Fuhrer talks us through the development of Power Saber – and why Goliath proved to be a perfect partner for the project.