Barbie doll sales are booming online as the blockbuster film barrels toward $1 billion at the box office

• "Barbie" the movie is on track to top $1 billion in box-office sales.
• The "Barbie effect" is also boosting Mattel's direct-to-consumer sales of dolls, per Shopify.
• Shoppers are "voting with their wallets" for their favorite brands, even as they cut spending elsewhere, one exec said.

The "Barbie effect" is in full swing.

Two weeks after the hit summer film's release, box office sales are on track to top $1 billion, and retail sales of the namesake dolls are booming.