Girls Prefer More Boy Brands

Playthings Staff -- Gifts and Dec, 11/14/2012 9:45:01 AM

Lego Friends Pet PatrolNEW YORK - Girls like pink, but they also like Batman, hockey and tech gadgets, according to a new survey by market reserach firm Smarty Pants.

The Young Love study found that even though girls like girlish playthings, some also like blue——and superheroes, construction toys and sports. Some of the fastest growing brands among girls are those that might be considered boyish, according to Young Love. The annual study was conducted online among a sample of U.S. households with children ages 6 to 12 and surveyed 250 consumer brands across 20 product categories during the three-month survey of more than 4,600 children and their parents.

Lego toys ranked tops with girls at 97 percent in popularity over 2011 figures, which may be due to the new Lego Friends line, a collection of female characters featuring different, buildable settings (café, restaurant, cars, tree house). Although, the line stirred some controversy because of its stereotypical female play sets, it has helped introduce more girls to more construction-based toy lines, according to Smarty Pants. Still, girls love more of the "boy" brands than ever before. Batman, Superman, Cartoon Network, Beyblade, Madden NFL, Hot Wheels and more were runners up as top brands with girls in the survey.

Few parents discourage girls from adopting boy brands the way they might discourage boys from adopting girl brands, according to the report. At the same time, younger girls see older girls ignoring gender expectations and adopting attitudes of being able to do anything boys can do-and they aren't shy about showing their appreciation for the hobbies, products, and brands that boys favor.

"Today, girls comfortably hang an Under Armour shirt in their closet next to a Monster High tee without seeing contrast between the two, and they are quick to point out that LEGOs are just as much fun for girls as boys," said Wynne Tyree, president, Smarty Pants, in a statement. "They are drawn to the likes of Catwoman in the Batman franchise, and they see Best Buy as an invaluable tech hub as much as their male peers."