Never a doll moment: New line of toys challenge gender stereotypes

Action-oriented mums may be relieved that their little girls now have an alternative to conventional princess or model dolls.

Consider instead a pirate who sets off on a treasure hunt, a karate expert who breaks bricks with her bare hands or a tinkerer who builds robots from recycled materials.

These unusual scenarios have proved to be a winning formula for British toy start-up Arklu, which presents its Lottie dolls in a range of activities. The idea is to celebrate the different ways to be a girl, say founders Lucie Follett and Ian Harkin.

“Girls can wear pretty dresses but they can still wear corduroy trousers and jeans to get muddy,” Follett says. “They can do science projects, climb trees, dress up as pirates. There are many ways to be a girl. That’s the message we try to get across.”

Many parents seem to like this approach: designed for girls aged from three to nine, the 12 different Lottie dolls have been selling well worldwide since their release in 2012, especially in Britain and North America.

The dolls are now available in 14 countries and are scheduled for release in Hong Kong at the end of May.