Brand Strategy
Labubu: The Mischievous Toy Turning into a Global Brand Phenomenon
- Pop Mart’s revenue reached approximately 拢693 million in 2024, with the Labubu series ranking among its top-selling properties across Asia and emerging European markets.
- While exact Q1 2025 figures have not been disclosed, Pop Mart reported strong global demand for the Labubu blind box series and increasing cross-border online resales, especially in the UK, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
What is Labubu?
In 2025, one name continues to dominate both niche collector forums and high-street fashion windows. Labubu. With its pointy ears, exaggerated grin, and squat, elfin frame, the toy isn鈥檛 just part of a collector鈥檚 shelf鈥攊t鈥檚 turning up in wardrobes, online galleries, and streetwear drops.
If you’re unfamiliar, you’re not alone. Yet, you may have already seen it without knowing. Hanging from handbags in Soho. Positioned carefully beside coffee cups on TikTok. Gifted, traded, framed, and even worn. The Labubu trend is no longer just a collectable fad. It’s a signal of how people around the world are expressing taste, nostalgia, and identity.
Who Created Labubu?
Labubu is the creation of Kasing Lung, a Hong Kong-born artist known for illustrating picture books with mythical and Nordic folklore-inspired characters. Labubu made its debut as part of “The Monsters” series鈥攁 dark yet whimsical story universe of strange creatures and misunderstood beings.
The first vinyl Labubu figures appeared in 2015. Then, a strategic licensing deal with in 2019 brought the character to blind boxes and mainstream exposure across Asia. Pop Mart, a leading toy company based in China, launched Labubu in a rotating collectable series that combined limited runs, surprise unboxing, and exclusive seasonal designs.
Why is Labubu a Trend?
Blind box culture is key to Labubu’s spread. You never know which figure you will get. This randomness turns collecting into a game. Completing a set requires trade, patience, or repeat purchases. Rare pieces, known as “chase” editions, command steep resale values.
Social media has played an equally important role. Influencers across China, Japan, Korea, and increasingly in the West post their Labubu hauls with stylised lighting and precise angles. TikTok unboxings regularly top hundreds of thousands of views. On Instagram, stylists pair Labubu figures with streetwear, luxury bags, or daily outfits.
The Fashion World Takes Notice
In early 2023, Labubu began appearing on the arms of celebrities like Blackpink鈥檚 Lisa and model Bella Hadid. Streetwear designers began referencing the figure in pop-up installations and capsule drops. At least one designer from Seoul’s fashion week was seen incorporating Labubu’s outline in their patterns.
What does this mean for you?
Labubu is becoming a bridge between character art and personal fashion. A toy once tucked away in acrylic boxes is now part of aesthetic signalling. If you’re in fashion retail, this is not just another fad鈥攊t鈥檚 a signal to follow what your audience is emotionally responding to.
Emotional Collecting and the Kidult Market
The rise of Labubu fits into a wider market pattern: adults buying toys. Often called “kidults”, these buyers are not just nostalgic. They’re curating taste. They choose specific figures because they represent something: a mood, a design sensibility, or a moment.
Labubu sits at the intersection of that desire. Cute but not soft. Whimsical but not childish. The figures carry personality and grit. They can be playful, sombre, or absurd.
When you see someone carry one, it usually signals that they know the story. It鈥檚 like a visual language shared among collectors.
The Business of Scarcity
Pop Mart limits each Labubu release to regional availability, special events, or limited drops. This creates urgency. A Christmas-themed Labubu may only be released in Tokyo. A pastel version might only come via a 2-hour pop-up in Hong Kong. The scarcity keeps people alert and drives cross-border trade.
On platforms like StockX and Xianyu, rare Labubu editions can reach up to 拢500 or more. It鈥檚 common for full sets to double in value within weeks of release.
This secondary market behaviour mirrors sneaker reselling. It creates data points for brand analysts and investors who are watching for what characters and editions move fastest.
Cultural Positioning
Labubu stands apart from other toy characters by refusing to be too polished. The figure鈥檚 uneven features and slightly feral design push back against the gloss of typical designer toys. Kasing Lung described Labubu as a mix of wildness and kindness.
This contradiction appeals to a wide base. In China and Southeast Asia, Labubu is increasingly displayed in workspaces and design studios. In Europe and the UK, it appears on shelves beside fashion books and incense holders.
It tells a story of imperfection. And it invites emotional identification without trying too hard.
What’s Next for the Trend?
Labubu shows no signs of slowing. In 2025, Pop Mart announced new artist collaborations, including a crossover with luxury Japanese ceramicists and a rotating exhibition in London and Paris. These exhibitions allow fans to view the design process behind Labubu and see limited-edition installations.
Labubu plush toys, enamel pins, and apparel lines are growing too. UK-based concept stores and collectable boutiques are beginning to stock exclusive designs.
For brands and retailers, the message is clear: designer toys are not outside the fashion ecosystem. They are becoming part of it.
Final Reflections
Labubu is no longer just a toy. It鈥檚 a brand. A symbol. A way to carry personality in your hand, or pocket, or Instagram post.
As a consumer, you may ask yourself what this means. What signals are you sending? Are you collecting because of the design or because it connects to something more?
As a brand, you may wonder where your product stands in that same landscape. Are you speaking to nostalgia, to identity, or rarity?
And as a cultural observer, the question becomes: where does something like Labubu sit on the spectrum between art and commerce?
For now, it seems to sit quite comfortably right in the middle.
