Two Barbie dolls, one in a pastel floral dress and the other in a blue embroidered dress, stand in front of a large Barbie and Kell's box with two pink chairs, one with a hat and the other with a bouquet of yellow tulips, on a black and pink background.

The Challenge

While collaborating with the Mattel Creations team, Concannon Art learned that a crucial aspect of the art direction was to draw inspiration directly from Kartell's style guide and utilitarian packaging style.

Our design team made sure to explore designs that maintained a primary focus on the art direction received from the MC team. We also aimed to develop concepts that would offer a wide range of ideas.

Below are some of the preliminary design ideas that led up to the final concept that was ultimately selected.

Colorful Barbie-themed card game packaging with illustrations of chairs, tables, and drawers, featuring the Barbie and Kartell logos.
Image of a Barbie-themed portfolio with design layouts, a black box with red and black branding, and a shiny chrome surface with a black box on top.
Barbie-themed toy box in pink and black with the name 'Ken' and a date '22.30.02' printed on it.
Set of cardboard boxes and packaging for a Barbie and Kartell collaboration furniture collection, featuring pink accent chairs and a stool, with branding and product illustrations.
Box packaging design for Barbie Kartell, featuring colorful blocks with outline illustrations of furniture items and text.
Box packaging for a Kartell x Barbie collaboration featuring minimalist chair silhouettes on a beige background, with additional inserts depicting chair shapes and assembly parts. A pink Barbie-themed chair is positioned to the left of the box.
Box set of chairs inspired by Barbie, featuring cardboard cutouts of five different styled chairs, a pink Barbie-themed chair, and packaging with the Kartell and Barbie logos.
A cardboard set up box with cutouts for chair designs from the Kartell x Barbie collection, featuring logo and product info, placed next to a pink Barbie-style chair.
A large pink shopping bag and a smaller pink box, both featuring the Barbie and Mattel logos, along with the name 'Karte' in bold white letters, and decorated with black handles and pink accents.
Mattel and Barbie collaboration box featuring pink chairs, a pink balloon, and a pink handbag, with branding and logos.
A set of cardboard packaging for Kar-Tell Barbie, including a large box with a black overlay, a smaller rectangular box with six compartments featuring symbols of a crown, a dome, a car, a lipstick, a cake, and a cup, and a plastic tray with six molds matching the symbols.
Packaging for Barbie and Mattel UNO Kartell, featuring illustrations of a table, chair, and table on the box, with a smaller box and a toy car in the background.
Box of Kidkraft Barbie doll furniture set with pink doodles of furniture items.
A cardboard set up box with a black and pink branded label for Kartell x Barbie, including a pink Barbie chair and a tray with six cutout slots shaped like furniture pieces for assembling the chair. The tray features product codes and branding for Kartell and Mattel Creations.
Barbie-themed toy set box with a pink chair nearby. The box features a large black 'K' logo, the word 'Kartell,' and the date 02/23/02. There is an inner tray with four compartments shaped to hold small mannequin figures, labeled KB2301, KB2301, KB2301, KB2304, and KB2306, with the Barbie logo and document text.
Set up box for a Kartell x Barbie furniture collection featuring five miniature chairs with and takeout box packaging with the collection name and logo.
Four miniature pink and clear chairs arranged in front of a cardboard box with a pink background and a wooden display underneath. The box has the text "Barbie x Kartell" and illustrations of five different chairs.

The Simple Solutions
Tend to be the Best

Unboxing the miniatures from the molded pulp tray provides the experience of receiving meticulously crafted Italian furniture right in your own home. The tray itself is robust and ensures the perfect protection of the furniture during storage.

The craft box, designed with a clean and contemporary aesthetic, adds to the collectible value and effectively communicates the unique collaboration between Barbie and Kartell. As a packaging design studio, projects like these are treasured.

Close-up of a black v-neck shirt with light blue chevron stripe.