The Dodge Built for Women Was Designed Entirely by Men

Insight summary

• •Dodge designed the La Femme in the mid-1950s as a car targeted solely at women, but it was developed entirely by men, resulting in a marketing misfire.
• •The La Femme was based on the Dodge Custom Royal Lancer, a well-regarded two-door hardtop with a 270-315 cubic-inch Red Ram Hemi V8 engine.
• •The car featured feminine-themed options including pale pink tapestry upholstery with rosebuds, two-tone pastel paint jobs, and accessories like a pink calfskin purse, rose-patterned raincoat, matching hat, and umbrella.
• •Despite its strong performance capabilities and advanced features for the time, the feminine marketing failed to resonate with actual women consumers.
• •Approximately 2,500 Dodge Custom Royals were fitted with the La Femme package, making it a rare and niche model.
• •The design and marketing reflected 1950s stereotypes of women focused on domestic roles, disconnected from emerging feminist and civil rights movements.
• •The vehicle’s exterior and accessories have been retrospectively criticized as kitschy and out of touch with realistic female desires in automotive design.