From the early morning queues in Los Angeles to the rush to brawl on the streets of London, from the Thai royal family to the top stars in Europe and the United States, Labubu, the “ugly cute” elf, is setting off a phenomenal craze around the world. In 2024, Labubu’s THE MONSTERS series will have revenue of 3.04 billion yuan, a year-on-year surge of 726.6%, becoming a strong driver of Bubble Mart’s market value exceeding HK$300 billion. What exactly does Labubu rely on to become a phenomenal IP that has swept the world?
On the streets of Los Angeles at three o’clock in the morning, the crowd was like a long snake winding in front of the Bubble Mart store, and some people even curled up on folding chairs wrapped in blankets, staring at the store door that had not yet opened.
At the same moment, hipsters in Shibuya, Tokyo clenched their mobile phones to refresh the online mall.
Fans in Bangkok marked a high price of 1,925 yuan for a plush doll with an original price of 99 yuan on the second-hand trading platform.
And on Oxford Street in London, the police had to intervene in a brawl caused by a rush – the source of all this madness was Labubu, an “ugly” elf with nine fangs and disheveled hair.
This image from Hong Kong, China, by designer Long Jiasheng, is conquering the world at an astonishing speed
In 2024, Labubu’s THE MONSTERS series revenue will be 3.04 billion yuan, a year-on-year surge of 726.6%, driving the market value of Bubble Mart to exceed HK$300 billion.
From the Thai royal princess to the top Rihanna in Europe and the United States, from the Hermès bag to the Louvre co-brand, how did this “oriental little monster” become a phenomenal IP that swept the world?
Let’s take a look at the development history of labubu
Development history
1. 2015-2019: Dormant period (art incubation stage)
Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung created the image of Labubu based on Norse mythology and oriental monster elements, which initially existed in the form of picture book characters, but the market response was lackluster
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In 2019, it signed a contract with Bubble Mart to test the Chinese market in the form of blind boxes, and the first batch of 5,000 mini blind boxes was sold at a price of 39 yuan, which attracted niche attention through the “Emoticon Competition” of Bilibili
2. 2020-2023: Breaking the circle (localized operation)
Product iteration: Upgrade from monochrome injection molding to magnetic accessories and luminous materials, and launch a series of plush pendants, cutting into the “bag and hanging culture” scene
Community fission: The probability of hidden models is as low as 1/144 (0.69%), the second-hand premium gives birth to the “baby clothes economy”, and Xianyu forms a customized industry chain of Hanfu/Lolita skirts
Celebrity first try: Thai star Lisa’s occasional photos have caused popularity in Southeast Asia, and Bubble Mart took advantage of the opportunity to launch a limited edition of religious robes in Thailand and was awarded the title of “Magical Thailand Experience Officer”
3. 2024-2025: Globalization Explosion (Cultural Symbol Transition)
Top stream goods: Lisa, Rihanna, Dua Lipa, etc. took Labubu out on the street, and the TikTok topic #StylingMyBagwithLABUBU had more than 1.1 million views, becoming the standard feature of Hermès bags
Phenomenal rush buying: Labubu 3.0 will be released globally in 2025, the Bubble Mart App will top the shopping list in the United States, Los Angeles/London stores will now have a 300-meter queue, and scalpers will increase the price by 24 times (co-branded models are fried to 14,800 yuan)
Cultural output: There is an art theme store next to the Louvre in Paris, and the Spanish Matador limited edition is launched; It has been transformed into a Kardashian style by European and American players, reversely promoting the internationalization of IP
Analysis of the cause of the explosion
The explosion of labubu is actually a multi-dimensional resonance effect
1. Design disruption and emotional value
Labubu’s explosion began with a complete rebellion against traditional cute aesthetics: jagged fangs, asymmetrical round eyes, and distorted body proportions – elements that were once regarded as “flaws” by the mainstream, accurately piercing the rebellious psychology of Generation Z against “exquisite fatigue”, and the aesthetic contrast also broke the logic of cuteness and popularity, highlighting the emotional color of independence and rebellion.
Labubu’s rebellious temperament of “good and evil” is just like Nezha’s cry of “my fate is up to me”, allowing consumers, especially young people, to see their spiritual silhouettes on dolls.
Young people own LABUBU, which provides a scarce “emotional healing value” to life.
By collecting Labubu, we can relive the happiness of childhood card collection and realize the emotional compensation of “temporarily escaping from reality”, and the “dopamine moment” of opening the blind box has become an “emotional first aid kit” to combat the pressure of reality
Gen Z is the native of the digital home and often faces social dilemmas.
LABUBU transcends the toy attribute and becomes a “silent companion”. Fans name it, write stories, and even see it as part of the family.
This emotional projection builds a strong psychological connection: when people carry LABUBU to work and place it on their desks, it is no longer a commodity, but a “spiritual companion” that soothes anxiety and exhaustion.
2. Business mechanism: blind box economy + scarcity leverage
Bubble Mart creates scarcity through the “blind box + limited” strategy, and the probability of winning the hidden model is as low as 1/72, and consumers repeatedly purchase for the complete series, similar to the instant pleasure of “card opening pack” to stimulate dopamine secretion.
At the same time, strategies such as regional restriction are used to stimulate cross-regional collecting and collecting. Scarcity and high added value have created secondary market premiums.
At the same time, LABUBU has also opened a co-branded normalization mode.
- the white enamel model in cooperation with Coca-Cola has become the standard for hipster street photography;
- The LABUBU version of the SUV model co-branded with Xiaomi Auto sparked heated discussions at the auto show;
- The “Mona Lisa LABUBU” launched with the Louvre Museum in France has become a must-buy “souvenir” for Parisian tourists;
- Crossover with Moutai, the “LABUBU Zodiac Wine” launched during the Spring Festival in 2025 is limited to 5,000 bottles worldwide, and the pre-sale is sold out in 72 seconds.
3. Celebrities and social media fission
Labubu’s communication path is a textbook case.
- Lisa showed off the Labubu blind box between the cover shoot of “Vanity Fair”, and the global fan economy engine was launched.
- Rihanna hung it on the LV bag
- The Kardashians customize the display case for Labubu
- Beckham posted a doll given to him by his daughter
- Celebrity endorsements have made toys a luxury replacement
On TikTok #labubuhaul播放量超10亿次, users created from “Zhen Huan Universe La Fei” to “London Detective Lab Moss”
Bangkok university students became popular for imitating Labubu’s dance, and their Thai adaptation of “Baby Shark” received 5 million views.
This kind of UGC content greatly extends the boundaries of IP narrative
4. Globalization and localization strategy
Precise customization for different markets:
- Thailand: Launched a gold silk costume model, which was publicly sought after by the royal princess and was awarded the title of “Magical Thailand Experience Officer”
- Europe: The Louvre co-branded “Mona Lisa Labubu” has become a popular tourist souvenir in Paris
- Community ritual construction: offline “baby gathering”, Hong Kong Deshun Hall Queen of Heaven sacrifice ornaments
This model of “localized narrative + global channel resonance” not only maintains the recognition of the IP core, but also realizes cultural translation through scenario-based transformation, so that LABUBU has been sublimated from a trendy toy to a cultural ritual carrier
5. Technology empowerment: AIGC co-creation + derivative economy
#labubuhaul has been played more than 1 billion times on TikTok, and users have created from “Zhen Huan Universe Lafei” to “London Detective Labu Moss”, AI-generated content greatly extends the boundaries of IP narrative, and fans use AI technology to make their COS into any image, such as Xiaomi car LABUBU, firefighter LABUBU, migrant worker LABUBU, chef LABUBU.
LABUBU stimulates users’ enthusiasm for modification, and social platforms form a communication chain of “modification-sharing-grass planting”, and IP has become a cultural partner that can be touched, transformed, and co-created, and an industrial chain of transformation and baby clothing customization has been derived.
On platforms such as Xianyu and Taobao, “LABUBU baby clothes” form a market segment, professional baby designers add special decorations to dolls, and handmade girls develop Hanfu, Lolita skirts, detective suits and other baby clothes.
revelation
While traditional toy giants emphasize functional attributes (such as Barbie’s educational significance), Labubu’s success proves that contemporary people are buying not only toys but also spiritual compensation.
Wang Ning, the founder of Bubble Mart, once said that its essence is a “company that makes art” and uses commercial means to promote art
The essence of LABUBU’s explosion is the result of the resonance of global aesthetic rebellion, star economic fission, scarcity business design, technology-enabled co-creation and the emotional rigidity of Generation Z
Labubu’s success proves that contemporary IP needs to have both “emotional container function” (design) + “cultural translation ability” (operation) + “user co-creation ecosystem” (technology) in order to build long-term vitality in the wave of globalization.
