Behind the Usuki-Fever: A Brilliant Mind

     IK: Mrs. Roo Handler, first of all, thank you very much for making your time available for this interview with the Neopian Times! Can you tell us a bit about what your inspiration was for creating the dolls?

     RH: Hello Isaac! Thank you for the invitation. The idea of creating Usuki dolls is much simpler than it seems. Children first fell in love with plushies and soon after came the dolls. But you see, go back to Y1 or Y2, the only dolls available in shops were faerie dolls. And I have all due respect for faeries, but my children were not faeries, *laughs*, and they didn't identify with that kind of toy. When my daughters played with faerie dolls, they ended up imagining very different stories. So I thought: why not give them dolls that fit exactly the stories they were acting out? And that's how the first Usuki dolls came to be.

     IK: Fascinating story, Mrs. Handler! We know that on the day of its release, eight Usuki dolls were released, including one of the most iconic, which is the Magical Hair Usuki. Besides that, the Hula Girl Usuki, Maraquan Usuki, Traditional Welsh Usuki, Fun in the Sun Usuki, Flight Attendant Usuki and Teenage Usuki were also released. What was the manufacturing process for these dolls lIKe? Was there any specific reason for them to be Usuls, or for them to have these themes?

     RH: Having the idea is always easy. Putting the doll on the shelf was a big challenge. I personally didn't have much knowledge in doll production; I knew a few craft things, but putting dolls up for sale required a standard. We did an analysis, and of all the species known in Neopia at that time, Usul seemed the simplest to mass-replicate. And with few changes to the clothes, we were able to vary the models. My daughters aren't Usuls, but they loved the idea anyway. The possibility of having specific dolls for their play enchanted them more than anything. And honestly, we could have even done the idea with faerie dolls, we even thought about it, but we would have patent issues with the Faerieland doll companies, so we opted for something very simple. The theme of the eight dolls was chosen based on my daughters' own play. We set up our shop in Neopia Central, Usukiland, which today is managed by a niece, and we hosted an opening event. The dolls sold out on the same day. And with that success, we decided to launch five more models in the following two weeks.

     IK: The first Usuki were dolls with a ready-made theme. We mentioned the first eight, but subsequent releases were also tied to some specific theme. A month later, Usukiland started releasing accessories and sets. Was this already planned?

     RH: Yes, it was part of the plan. In order for children to play with the accessories and sets, they needed to have the dolls first! So the first releases were focused so that you would acquire a doll with a specific set. But if you notice any model of Usuki doll, all the clothes and sets were removable. At the beginning of the launches, we saw that children were already swapping their dolls' clothes with each other. So we were optimistic that the idea of launching accessories and sets would also please the public.

     IK: The first accessories made a lot of allusion to the word "Dream". We had the launch of the Usuki Dream Car, Usuki Dream Castle, Usuki Dream Boat. What was the idea behind naming the products this way?

     RH: We wanted Usuki to be a doll that always had the most incredible things. When we bring up that it's the Dream Boat or the Dream Castle, it's because it's everything that Usuki always imagined.

     IK: You mentioned at the beginning that you wanted to avoid patent issues with Faerieland. But later we saw Faerie-themed Usukis, and Fyora herself, Queen at the time, got her Usuki version. How did those conversations go?

     RH: Honestly Isaac, I didn't imagine that Usuki would have the success that it did. When we launched the dolls, the dream line, and the play sets, we had in mind that we wanted to expand this universe. Bring new adventures, clothes, and stories to Usuki. But Usuki became something much bigger than that. It went beyond the toy and became a culture. People didn't just want to play Usuki, they wanted to be Usuki. And that led our brand to test new ideas. We launched the Court Dancer Usuki Set, where children could dress their Usuki lIKe the Court Dancer, but we realized that children wanted to go beyond the clothes. So we thought of even more personalized Usukis.

     IK: And from there, I imagine you're going to bring up the stories about the Usukis that represent characters. The first one I have recollection of was the Jeran Usuki. Why was Jeran the first to be chosen?

     RH: That's a good question Isaac, and it reflects a lot on how our sales mirror the history of the time. The battle between Meridell and Darigan had ended, we're talking about Y6. On that occasion, Neopians talked about nothing else, and we saw the opportunity to launch both the Jeran Usuki and also the Lord Kass Usuki. After that, we made Usukis out of everything. We had Kings, Faeries, icons from all over Neopia have had their own version of the Usuki doll.

     IK: You mentioned well that Usuki became a culture. Was it this aspect that motivated you to create Usukicon?

     RH: It wasn't exactly me who created Usukicon, but yes, it was a movement by our brand thinking about fostering Usuki culture. At some point, Neopians even had difficulty keeping up with releases, new ideas, and even a bit of what I said about swapping clothes and accessories was getting lost. Usukicon was designed for the public, so that everyone would have the opportunity to learn about the Usuki doll. Today, Usuki has gone far beyond a product for children to play with; it is also a collectible item. And this collectible aspect of our dolls really drives our convention. After so many years running this event, those who came here as children playing with Usuki are adults today, but who still collect the dolls. I love seeing the energy of Usuki spanning generations!

     IK: Well Mrs. Handler, we couldn't talk about Usukis without also talking about Quigukis. What do you think about them?

     RH: I love Quigukis! Just as we have several Usukis inspired by real Neopian personalities, Quigukis are inspired by Usukis. It's incredible to see where Usuki has reached, to the point of itself being an inspiration for other products.

     IK: Now I need to ask you: What is your favorite Usuki doll?

     RH: Oh Isaac, what a difficult question! There are so many, and I have such a special affection for all of them. But I'll tell you that it's the Magical Hair Usuki. It was in the original release, her hair, her clothes have spanned so many generations. When someone thinks of Usuki, they certainly think of that doll with that purple and green hair. So I vote for her.

     IK: Would you like to leave any final message for Neopians?

     RH: I would just like to thank all the Neopians who believed in the Usuki doll all these years. Whether this doll was part of your childhood or is entering your life now, I am immensely happy that my creation has something special for you. Come to Usukicon, enjoy it a lot! The Usuki team has prepared a lot of cool things for you, I'm sure you'll like it!

     We are the ones who thank you, Mrs. Handler! And don't forget to check out all the news from Usukicon Y27! I'm Isaac Kee III, signing off!