There are Barbie Collector dolls, and then there are Direct Exclusives – the dolls sold only through the Barbie Collector catalog and the online shop in the United States and Canada.

These dolls – like Goddess of the Galaxy™ Barbie® Doll and Bob Mackie Countess Dracula Barbie® Doll from 2011 – are the ultimate in radical glam!

This year, Direct Exclusives continue to push the bounds of fashion, and now they’re redefining the way you display and travel with your dolls! The doll box has been re-designed for 2012 and beyond, and it’s all kinds of fabulous.

Anyone who brought home a globe-trotting beauty from the 2012 Dolls of the World® Collection got a preview of the new packaging, which provides a beautiful and consistent line look for Direct Exclusive dolls, and will only be used for Direct Exclusive dolls in the future.

“We wanted to create an elegant and refined aesthetic, and feature the doll more prominently within the packaging,” notes Katie Phillips (aka “BC Katie” to members of the Barbie^SM Fan Club).

Not only does the new packaging double as a carrying case for the doll within, it also allows collectors to neatly store souvenirs within the packaging. For traveling to events like the annual National Barbie® Doll Collectors Convention, the new packaging makes transport and display a fashionable breeze.

Next up in the Direct Exclusives line to feature the fresh new doll box look: Linda Kyaw’s fantastic The Mermaid Barbie®, and the first Club-exclusive doll for the 2012 BFC™, Robert Best’s Barbie Fashion Model Collection® Afternoon Suit Barbie®. Be on the lookout for even more in the coming months, as the hottest dolls of the year rock the new doll box!