The world's first Barbie store comes to the land of living dolls

Women in Argentina already have a worrying reputation for demanding the unattainable from themselves in appearance. Now their daughters are getting the chance to mirror that most iconic of impossibly proportioned role models: Barbie.

The Buenos Aires Barbie Store – the first of its kind on the planet – doesn't just sell the 11-inch slender dolls, it sells everything you need to become Barbara Millicent Roberts, the famous blonde from the fictional town of Willows, Wisconsin. And with Barbie set to turn 50 next year, the format is to be rolled out across the globe, from Uru-guay to Shanghai.

The Argentine prototype is 7,000 sq ft (650 sq m) of pink-and-white paraphernalia. There are Barbie-labelled clothes, Barbie watches and Barbie combs. Not for Barbie, but for real-life girls. Beyond the clothes section, a beauty salon offers the Argentine schoolgirl everything from a simple manicure to a complete Barbie-makeover. Hair-braiding costs £13. The "Barbie Full Style" hairdo is pricier at almost £26.

Argentina is obsessed with bodily appearance. The number of people undergoing plastic surgery is staggering, and at least 10 per cent of young girls suffer eating disorders, one local clinic says. In Argentina, Barbie has been a huge hit for years, even sporting her own Broadway-style musical revue Barbie Live, a sensation on the Buenos Aires stage.

"Every Argentine woman wants to be Barbie," Ramiro Mayol, the producer of the show, told local media. The Barbie lifestyle is adhered to at the highest level. The stunning features of President Christina Fernandez are rumoured to be medically assisted, and it's a delicious irony that the presidential mansion is called the Pink House.

At the store, while the enraptured eight-year-olds have their nails varnished, mum and gran can relax at the Barbie café, treating themselves to miniature cakes covered in garishly pink icing. It's a great place to reminisce about bygone days of Barbie-coddling, while titbits of Barbie history highlighted on the walls.

Did you know for instance that if all the Barbie dolls sold since 1959 were lined up head to toe, they would stretch around the globe seven times? Or that Barbie didn't get a bellybutton until she was 41?

"The Barbie Store is a place where little girls feel big and mothers return to their childhood," says Tito Loizeau, one of the owners of the store. And Emilce Tabares and Paula Zavruttin are evidence of what an enticing recipe for retail success that is. "Officially, of course we're here for my two-year-old Martina, but really we wanted to see the place for ourselves," says Emilce. "Barbie is the doll," raves Paula, "the clothes and the different jobs she has make her very special."

The back of the shop is dedicated to Casa Barbie, a place to host your child's birthday party. That means dressing up Barbie-style and strutting the catwalk. There's a Barbie Birthday cake to top it off. Thankfully, pesky little brothers are kept under control with a box of Hotwheels toy cars.