Why Is Labubu So Popular? From Supporting Role to Top Star
Thanks to the huge success of IPs like Labubu both domestically and internationally, Pop Mart’s stock price has surged 12 times in over a year, with its market value joining the “300 billion yuan club.” On June 8th, its founder Wang Ning became Henan’s new richest person. With countless unique IP characters featuring distinctive art styles, why has the “ugly cute” supporting character Labubu taken the world by storm? The global offline stores, unique blind box mechanism, and social media spread are all powerful drivers behind this phenomenal IP phenomenon. However, in my opinion, the key factor behind its explosion in popularity lies in discovering excellent creativity and high-quality IPs, through continuous promotion and operation, allowing IPs that better align with current consumer psychology and provide differentiated emotional value to consumers to stand out.
Labubu was created by Hong Kong illustrator Long Jiasheng in 2015 and has been collaborating with Pop Mart since 2018 on plush toy blind boxes. Labubu is depicted as a fairy tribe living in the forest, with an appearance that combines sharp fangs and a fluffy texture, and a personality that is mischievous yet kind, forming a unique “ugly cute” style. Compared to most plush toy IPs that are either beautiful or cute, Labubu’s image is not traditionally cute. Its “mischievous” and “naughty” personality traits differentiate it from Pop Mart’s other IPs. In fact, before its huge popularity in 2024, Labubu was not Pop Mart’s most prominent IP. Although it had accumulated a certain fan base, it did not attract widespread attention. In 2024, the attention and promotion from celebrities created a viral effect, allowing more people to recognize the uniqueness of this IP’s personality and meeting consumers’ diverse aesthetic and emotional needs on a broader scale. Similar to Labubu, the villainous IP Kuromi from Sanrio standing out among numerous IPs also shows that in the context of Z-generations pursuing individuality, IPs that break free from traditional sweet aesthetics align with the new generation’s desire for unique personalities and rejection of uniformity, becoming a key factor in their popularity.
Continuously providing products and services that meet consumer needs is the golden rule of brand marketing. As mentioned in Pop Mart’s 2024 financial report, the most important aspect of Pop Mart’s business model is to meet consumers’ psychological needs and emotional value, bringing them beauty, trends, and artistic enjoyment. The most important foundation for achieving this vision is Pop Mart’s full focus on enriching IP types and expanding its IP resource library, unlocking happiness and achieving “long-term success” through the “enhancement” of IP operations.
