Alexander Doll Company
The Madame Alexander Doll Company had its humble beginnings in the ghettos
of Brooklyn.
Born of Russian emigre' parents, Beatrice Alexander grew up in an apartment
over her father's doll shop and hospital. Her parents, as with other emigres of
the times, were determined that Beatrice and her sisters would succeed in this
land of opportunity. Beatrice saw the affluent lifestyles of her father's
customers and was determined to better herself, to rise above what she'd been
born into. This drive to succeed stayed with her all her life and led her to
constantly push the limits of what she, and ultimately her doll company, could
do.
When WW1 threatened to close her family's doll shop, Beatrice created a Red
Cross Nurse doll made of cloth. She and her sisters produced the doll in her
parent's kitchen. It was a big success. She then created a cloth baby doll,
which also became popular.
In 1923, with $1600 in hand, Beatrice started what became the Alexander Doll
Company. She hired neighbors to help with cloth doll production. A studio in
Manhattan became the new home of the company. Influenced by the Lenci Dolls of
Italy, she began creating molded cloth doll faces. She was an admirer of the
Lenci Dolls creator Elena Scavini and may have taken on the name "Madame"
Alexander because of Elena Scavini's tendency to call herself "Madame Lenci".
Beatrice liked the aura of nobility and elegance inherent in such a title and
adopted "Madame" as her own.
At that point in history, it was highly unusual to see a woman work outside
the home, much less run a company. Beatrice was determined to be a responsible
businesswoman and make a quality product. She was not going to be pushed around
and taken advantage of simply by virtue of her gender. She set high standards
for herself and others, winning the respect of shopowners and bankers she did
business with.
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