Communication Experience Lands Lloyd Her Dream Job
It all started when Aly Lloyd ’18 was sitting in her dorm room at Salisbury University watching Tiny Shoulders: Rethinking Barbie, a documentary about the evolution of Barbie. It was then that it hit her: This was what she wanted to do.
Now, that life is her creation.
In that moment, Lloyd had no idea that by age 25, she would be living her dream life working for Mattel, Inc. Today, she is the senior associate of global brand communications for Barbie, a brand with 99% brand recognition.
“Everyone has a Barbie story,” Lloyd said. “In the words of Barbie, you can be anything.”
Sitting in the residence halls at SU, Lloyd knew exactly what she wanted to do. She also knew that if she wanted to work for the top toy company in the world, she needed experience and a plan to get there.
She was in just the right place, with an environment that she described as welcoming, challenging and supportive. SU faculty and staff got to know her personally, and the community she formed gave her the guidance she needed to create the future of her dreams.
One of the most invaluable parts of her SU experience was the variety of internships that gave her real-world experience and helped her determine the kind of career she wanted.
“I cannot praise the Communication Department at SU highly enough,” Lloyd said. “All my professors were invested in my success and designed courses that truly prepared me for my career.”
After graduating from SU with a Bachelor of Arts in communication, she immediately took a job with Goliath Games, a board game company known for games like Rummikub and Mastermind. She then worked for Brilliant PR and Marketing, a top agency in the toy industry, before a Mattel recruiter reached out to her about an open public relations position on the Barbie team.
It was a dream come true. Before long, Lloyd picked up and moved to California to settle into the job she had always envisioned for herself.
This has been a busy year for Barbie, with the new movie premiering over the summer, trending Barbiecore fashion and introducing My First Barbie, the first doll specifically designed for preschoolers. Lloyd touches on exciting projects when Barbie collaborates with celebrities and partners such as the new HGTV competition series, the Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge. She spends her days giving behind-the-scenes tours to top-tier outlets like Vanity Fair, showing them what goes into making Barbie’s TikTok – because of course, Barbie is also an influencer. She also gets to draft press releases to launch projects like Barbie Inspiring Women Series, which honor heroines such as Bessie Coleman, Tina Turner and Jane Goodall, who paved the way for generations of girls to dream bigger than ever before.
“Barbie is constantly evolving, and every day is something different,” Lloyd said. “That’s why I love communications!”
“I am in love with the stories I help tell, with a goal to unlock the limitless potential in every girl. I went to SU knowing I wanted to land somewhere within the communications field and left with a career goal I have now achieved.”
Aly Lloyd
She said when a child picks up Barbie, they project their aspirations and play out their dreams, from Olympian medalist to U.S. president. Growing up, playing with Barbie showed her that she can be an empowered woman, without sacrificing her femininity. It was a message that stayed with her, propelling her to her current success.
Anything is possible. Just like her faculty at SU saw potential in her, she now gets to inspire young girls around the world.