With Santa on his way we ask can marketing send inhibiting messages about gender

Bombarded with the idea that there are toys for girls and for boys, Andrea Mara finds out why gendered marketing matters

My four-year-old son wants a Barbie Town House for Christmas, and I have mixed feelings — partly as it’s a little large for Santa’s sack, partly because it’s a little large for our small house, and mostly because I just don’t love Barbie.

But the fact that it’s a toy normally marketed to girls hasn’t registered with my son, and that’s the bit I love — he’s almost five now, and he still hasn’t succumbed to the supposed gender rules of toys.