How Pop Mart Dolls conquered the world

It is strange, whether ugly or jewelry are the options that have become a global feeling among the dolls – Labubu.

A monster was born, a creature like the Elfo of China’s toy Mart’s elf is viral purchasing. And he has no celebrity defenders of the defenders: Rihanna, Dua Lipa, Kim Kardashian and Blackpink Lisa. The usual folks are obsessed – from Shanghai to London, they made long queues to dispose of dolls, Sometimes the fight also down.

“You get a feeling of achievement when you are able to achieve such hard competitions,” says Fiona Zhang.

With Labubu the fascination of the world has almost triple pop-rotor profits in the last year – and even according to the soft Chinese power, pandemia and the west has been a tremendous relationship with the west.

So how did we get here?

Many is a question that still concerns, and even those who know the answer are not very sure that I can explain craze.

The labubu is a fictional character and brand. The word himself doesn’t mean anything. Hong Kong artist is the name of a character “The Monsters” created by Kasking Born Lung.

Vinyl faces are associated with the limbs of the peels, and they look like a signature – sharp ears, big eyes and twisted smile shows nine teeth. It seems to be divided on the Internet on the Internet, but they do not seem adorable or strange that they decide.

According to the official website of the store, Labubu “is polite and always wants to help, but it often gets the opposite unexpected.”

Labubu dolls “monsters” appeared in several series, such as “great energy”, “seat”, “exciting” and “drop wild”.

The labubu brand also has other characters in his universe, who inspired his well-known dolls, such as zimomom, her boyfriend Tycoco and her friend.

In the unattended eyes, some of these dolls are hard to separate each other. Knowledge would know, but the reputation of Labubu has certainly rubbed with other copies of the family.

An important part of Sales of Pop Mart were called blind boxes. Only when customers had purchased when they opened the package, when they were associated with the lungs of Kasing for Labubu rights for years.

It was 2019, almost a decade, after the entrepreneur, Wang Ning opened as a pop-up store in Mart, similar to a Kilo Kilo shop. When the blind box was successful, Pop Mart launched the first series in 2016, selling Molly dolls – Hong Kong artists similar to children created by Kenny Wong.

But after the growth of Pop Mart and December 2020, labubu sales, Hong Kong started selling shares. These shares rose by more than 500% in the last year.

Pop Mars itself has become an important retailer retailer. More than 2,000 distribution machines or “roboshops” works, worldwide. Now, you can buy Labubu dolls in stores, physical or virtual, in more than 30 countries, from the US to Australia and Singapore in the United Kingdom, as many of them have interrupted sales due to complete demand. Sales outside China contributed almost 40% of income in 2024.

In a sign known labubus, Chinese customs officials said they kidnapped more than 70,000 false dolls this week in recent days.

The demand was not risen for a night. He really took a few years to break the Elfin monsters in the mainstream.

Before the world is found before the labubu, their reputation was limited to China. 2022. As the country ended the country in the end, Ashley Dudenook, the founder of Chozan’s research company Foundation.

“Potemia, Many people in China felt emotionally escaped … And the Labubu character was very charming but chaotic,” he explains. “That anti-perfectionism was embodied”.

The Internet is Chinese, horrible and competitive, creates many viral tendencies that do not go global. But this and reputation quickly spread to the neighbors of Southeast Asia.

When Fiona lived in Canada heard about Labubu in 2023. That’s when he started buying – he said pretty, but the main raffle is more and more popular: “I want more known.

“My husband doesn’t understand why, someone 30 years old someone would be so settled in something like that, what color will he get.”

It also helps affordable, he added. Although the applicants have promoted prices in the second hand market, Fiona said the original price, $ 25 for Canada ($ 18; 140 in most Canadian dollars, because most people who know it was “acceptable”.

“That’s how much it would cost her additional bags these days, most people could pay for that,” he explains.

Labubu’s popularity rose in April 2024, when Thai K-Pop Superstar Lisa began publishing Instagram photos with the Labubu dolls. And then other celebrities became the dolls this year’s international phenomenon.

The Singer Rihanna came out with a crop toy in Lauis Vuitton in February. Kim Kardashian shared influence in April 10 Labubu doll collection with his Instagram. In May, Sir David Beckham took the former football captain of England to Instagram with a photo of Labubu, given his daughters.

Dolls feel ubiquitously, not only online, as well as friends, colleagues or passers.

Just put it, we don’t know. Like most of the viral trends, Labubu’s appeal is difficult to explain – time, tasting and randomized internet result.

Beijing is happy with the result. The Xinhua State News Agency says Labubuk can “attract Chinese creativity, quality and culture in a world language” while allowing them to see “cool China”.

Xinhua has other examples showing the “Chinese cultural IP IP IP”: the game Black Myth: Wukong and The Animated Hit Film Nezha.

Some analysts seem impressed with Chinese companies – EV manufacturers and AI developers have been so successful than Beijing ambitions.

“Byd, Deepseek, all of these companies have a very interesting thing in common,” Chris Pereira, Founder and Consultancy Director General Manager, BBC News said.

“They are very good for anyone who cares for anyone from China. You can’t ignore it.”

Meanwhile, Labubuk continues to gather followers of social media by unlocking millions of new owners by unlocking their precious purchase. One of the most popular videos published in December, the extraordinary safety employee of the U.S. airport shows that it is to represent the doll inside a box of unopened labubu boxes among the passengers.

This surprise element is a large part of the appeal, DESMOND, says that it is a long-time collector, walking in Singapore Pop Mart not shaking blind boxes. It is a common vision in Pop Mart.

Desmond includes “Chaser” characters, including special editions in Pop Mart’s series, including Labubu. On average, Desmond says he finds it one by one from 10 boxes. The strike rate is good, claimed, compared to regular tests: one in 100.

“Chaser has been able to shake the box, learn how the difference feels …” It’s very happy for him.

“If I have only one or two attempts, I am very happy!”