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The rise of Labubu and the global takeover of Pop Mart
Imagine walking into a mall and seeing people argue over… dolls.
Not limited-edition Barbies or nostalgic Beanie Babies. We’re talking about furry little gremlins with oversized eyes, pointy ears, and exactly nine visible teeth — a character that looks part-elf, part-gremlin, and entirely bizarre.
Meet Labubu — the unlikely mascot of Pop Mart, the Chinese toy company that has quietly built a $40 billion empire. To put that in perspective, that’s more than Mattel and Hasbro combined — two of the biggest names in the global toy business. Mattel is the American company behind Barbie, Hot Wheels, and UNO. Hasbro owns franchises like Monopoly, Transformers, and even Peppa Pig.
So yes, a furry elf with nine teeth is now bigger than Barbie and Optimus Prime put together.
So how did a strange-looking creature take over the world?
Let’s rewind.
A Sketch That Sparked a Movement
Labubu was never meant to be famous. Created in 2015 by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung, it was just one of many characters in his illustrated series The Monsters. Lung describes Labubu as kind-hearted but often chaotic — well-meaning but not always effective. Sound familiar?
The name itself? It doesn’t mean anything. Just a whimsical label slapped onto a sketchbook doodle.
But this furry oddball was destined for something bigger.
Enter Wang Ning, an advertising graduate who launched Pop Mart in 2010. Back then, it was a humble store in Beijing selling mobile accessories and comic books.
Everything changed when Wang pivoted to designer toys and introduced a powerful idea — the blind box.
The Blind Box Revolution
Think of it like a mystery chocolate box, but with toys. For around $10, customers buy a sealed box without knowing what character is inside. There’s a basic lineup, a few rare designs, and one ultra-rare variant hidden in every 72 boxes.
In short — it’s part toy, part lottery ticket.
And it works.
Some collectors rip open hundreds of boxes hunting for a secret edition. Others try “shaking” boxes in-store to guess what’s inside. A few lucky ones get the rare toy on the first try. The unlucky ones? They keep buying.
This thrill of uncertainty became Pop Mart’s winning formula. And when the company secured rights to Labubu in 2019 — it had struck gold.
When K-pop and Kardashians Got Involved
In April 2024, Blackpink’s Lisa casually posted photos with her Labubu collection on Instagram. In a Vanity Fair interview, she described hunting for Pop Mart stores like a global scavenger hunt.
That one post changed everything.
Soon, Rihanna was spotted with a Labubu clipped to her Louis Vuitton bag. Kim Kardashian shared her collection on Instagram. Even David Beckham joined in after his daughter gifted him one.
Just like that, Labubu became more than a toy. It became a fashion accessory. A collectible. A global icon.
📈 Let’s Talk Numbers
The celebrity boost wasn’t just a PR win — it was a financial rocket.
- $419 million: Labubu’s standalone revenue in 2024, up 726% year-over-year.
- $1.8 billion: Pop Mart’s total revenue in 2024.
- $40 billion: Pop Mart’s market cap — now bigger than both Mattel and Hasbro put together.
- $22.1 billion: Wang Ning’s personal wealth, up 3x in a year.
Pop Mart’s The Monsters range (which includes Labubu) now accounts for nearly 20% of total sales. Its Crybaby series? Up 16x last year.
Not bad for what started as a sketch.
🌏 Global Takeover, One Roboshop at a Time
Pop Mart isn’t just popular in China. It’s going international at breakneck speed.
- 530+ physical stores worldwide
- 2,472 vending machines (“roboshops”)
- Presence in 30+ countries, including the US, UK, Australia, and Singapore
- Nearly $700 million in revenue from international markets
Their vending machines are genius — low-cost, high-traffic, and built for instant gratification. Like grabbing chips, but you get a designer toy instead.
But Not All is Cute and Fluffy
Success has brought chaos.
In both London and Seoul, Pop Mart had to pause sales due to actual fights breaking out among collectors. In China, customs officials seized over 70,000 counterfeit Labubu dolls. The secondary market is wild — $14 dolls being resold for triple their price. One human-sized Labubu sold for $167,000 at auction.
And the blind box model? It’s starting to draw regulatory heat in China over concerns about addictive spending — especially among minors.
🧠 The Psychology of Obsession
So why are people going wild for weird little dolls?
Here’s what experts think:
- The Lipstick Effect: During economic uncertainty, people cut back on luxury but still crave small indulgences. A $10 doll? Easy to justify.
- Emotional Attachment: Many Chinese millennials grew up as only children. These toys fill emotional gaps and offer companionship.
- Anti-Perfectionism: Labubu isn’t polished or pretty. Its charm lies in its rebellion against “Instagram-friendly” cuteness.
- The Thrill of the Hunt: Blind boxes turn shopping into a game. Every unboxing is a dopamine hit.
China’s Accidental Soft Power
Labubu’s global rise wasn’t planned by the Chinese government. It wasn’t part of a grand cultural strategy like Cool Japan or the K-wave from Korea.
It just… happened.
Fueled by fandoms, TikTok trends, and celebrity posts, Labubu became a viral export. Chinese state media now hails it as a symbol of “cool China” — a homegrown success that speaks the world’s language: cuteness, collectibility, and surprise.
What’s Next?
Pop Mart isn’t putting all its bets on Labubu. Other characters like Skullpanda, Molly, and Crybaby are gaining traction. The company behaves more like a media company than a toy maker — constantly creating, testing, and scaling intellectual property.
But that also brings risk.
Pop Mart trades at 33x forward earnings — far more expensive than legacy toy brands. And like all fads, one misstep could break the magic spell.
Analysts are watching closely. If the company fails to spin out new hits, it could fade as quickly as it rose.
The Bottom Line
Pop Mart’s story isn’t just about toys. It’s about understanding people.
It’s about how surprise, emotion, and design can turn a silly-looking elf into a billion-dollar business. And how, in a world of digital overload, a tiny box of mystery can still spark real joy.
Labubu may just be the face of a bigger shift — where adults embrace play, collect what makes them happy, and build identity through things that feel personal, not perfect.
After all, what’s more human than trying to find meaning in a box you can’t wait to open?
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What do you think? Are you ready to join the Labubu craze, or does this whole phenomenon seem as mysterious as the blind boxes themselves? Let us know in the comments below.
