Labubu craze: Pop Mart profits up 350% ; collaborations with global brands boost reach

Chinese toy giant Pop Mart is expecting its profits to increase by over 350 per cent in the first half of this year, driven by the remarkable global craze for its Labubu dolls, the company announced.

The Beijing-headquartered firm, popular for its blind box collectibles, said revenues for the January-June period more than tripled, fuelled by booming international demand and cost control. Pop Mart’s stock market valuation has soared to over $40 billion, with its shares surging nearly 600 per cent in the past year.

The viral Labubu dolls — quirky, elf-like characters with jagged teeth — have become a global sensation, flying off shelves and sparking long queues in stores worldwide.

Originally launched in 2019, the dolls have boosted Pop Mart into a major international retailer, now operating over 2,000 vending machines and stores globally.

Sales outside mainland China made up nearly 40 per cent of total revenue in 2024, a remarkable shift for the company which began trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2020.

Vinci Zhang, senior analyst at equity research firm M Science, told the BBC that Labubu obsession in the United States has hit new highs, thanks in part to high-profile endorsements from celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Blackpink’s Lisa.

According to M Science estimates, Labubu sales in the US surged by a staggering 5,000 per cent in June compared to the same period last year.

“I’ve not seen anything like this from other toy companies,” Zhang remarked, highlighting the explosive growth in demand.

Pop Mart’s collaborations with major brands like Coca-Cola and popular manga series One Piece have also raised Labubu’s global appeal.

The frenzy has also sparked a thriving resale market, with dolls previously priced at 10 dollars now being sold for hundreds of dollars. In one case, a human-sized Labubu was auctioned for a massive 150,000 dollars in Beijing this June.

The brand's popularity has also led to a surge in counterfeit products, often dubbed "Lafufu dolls". In June alone, Chinese authorities seized over 46,000 fake Labubu, as part of a larger crackdown on the black market.
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