One of the most popular genres in anime and manga is the magical girl genre, which includes such classic shows as Sailor Moon. That series was one of the first anime experienced on television by many English-speakers and it ushered in a wave of anime fandom along with Dragon Ball Z and Pokemon. While it helped to push anime into the limelight in America, it didn't bring the entire magical girl genre with it.
This is despite it being ubiquitous in Japan, and thus having tons of accompanying toys, figures and even make-up products geared toward not only young girls, but women as well. For a variety of reasons, fans outside of Japan have gone without many magical girl anime and the merch made to advertise them. Here are some of the reasons why magical girl goods aren't readily available next to Barbie and friends.
Magical Girls Are Big In Japan...And Few Other Places
There have been countless magical girl shows from before the genesis of Sailor Moon and even more after, all backed by massive marketing machines that churn out steady flows of merchandise and supplemental material. The lack of these things outside of Japan, however, all stem from the same happening to the shows themselves. Series like Shugo Chara and Madoka Magica weren't traditionally broadcast outside of Japan the same way that Sailor Moon was back in the '90s, let alone pitched to young girls in a similar fashion. With no show on TV, there was no way to advertise the "gotta have it" toys that'd help producers recoup costs. Even now that streaming reigns supreme, there's still little benefit in exporting toys en mass to the little kids they're made for -- who may not know they exist -- or the more money-minded older fans more likely to buy them.
The bright colors and twinkling visuals of these shows likely come off as more "kiddy" than more explosive, realistically violent shonen series like My Hero Academia or Naruto. Their penchant for action gives shonen a leg up when it comes to pitching to older audiences. There's also the general stigma around animation in America especially, with it generally being seen as a kids' medium. Magical girls series leaving Japan will also have to test their mettle against Disney and Barbie, two brands that dominate the "sparkly heroine" sub-genre, a battle made even more difficult by a market where female-oriented cartoons are seen as too big of a risk to bother taking.
Outside of Japan, the Girls Licensed Toy Market Is a Wasteland
Beyond the aforementioned Disney Princess products, there's also a veritable dearth of non-Barbie girls toys in the West. Franchises like L.O.L Surprise and My Little Pony wax and wane in popularity, but the licensed products filling toy aisles are typically geared toward boys. Add in the general trend away from traditional toys and the aforementioned problem of merchandising for niche shows, and it becomes clear why magical girl items, despite being so massively produced, never cross over.
Beyond Sailor Moon, brief exceptions to the rule included the 4Kids versions of Magical DoReMi and Mew Mew Power. These shows had their own set of notorious problems, namely 4Kids' blatant censorship of the material, but even they didn't get as much of a push as they could have. But, to 4Kids' credit, these shows still received brief appearances on toy shelves in the form of dolls, wand replicas and other collectibles. The failure of these toys came from a failure to reach their primary audience, girls. If this main group doesn't latch onto what's pitched to them, then older fans will definitely miss out.
Sites such as Hobby Link Japan offer consumers the world over the chance to purchase tons of merchandise from the favorite magical girl franchises, including figures from Sailor Moon. The massively popular Precure series has not only toys, but clothing and accessories, many of which can also be purchased on HLJ. Unfortunately, sites like this are likely going to stay the main way in which international fans can get mahou shojo swag until another show becomes a massive hit in America.