Robert Best is the unassuming designer for one of America’s most enduring icons – Barbie. Prior to this he was Isaac Mizrahi’s right hand man, another American icon, when he worked as his design assistant. We recently caught up with Best in Sydney. Following are some of the answers from our interview that didn’t quite make it to the latest issue.

How involved are you in the next ‘Peaches and Cream Barbie’, or the next ‘Louboutin Barbie’ – what is your role in conceptualising what to do with her next?

“As a principle designer your role is pretty instrumental because wherever the line goes next is a collaboration between both marketing and design, so it really comes from the two sides, and we brainstorm together based on input from all the teams. As a designer your job is to not just realise those ideas but to kind of be ahead of the zeitgeist, to put out ideas that you want to go forward with – whether it’s to think of new designers that you’d like to partner with, or celebrities or entertainment companies or whatever that might be. And then to meet with marketing partners and kind of put together the line based on what both teams really feel is the best direction forward…

“[At the moment] we’re out launching Barbie Basics and focusing on 2010, but meanwhile back at the home office we’re really wrapping up Fall 2011 in terms of the product that’s going to be on store shelves a year from now. And we have to start thinking about what’s going to happen in 2012, so you always are kind of like with an eye to the future, thinking about what’s going on.”