In the toy industry, the ‘Made in China’ label is no longer a stigma. At least, not since brands like Pop Mart has invaded the toy international panorama with accessible, modern products and whose sales are counted by millions. The giant of the hyperestilized dolls has captivated collectors and children from all over the world thanks to social networks, with an intergenerational impact that should be the envy of more “serious” industries. At least, While tariffs do not suppose a problem.
What are they? The Pop Mart are the dolls that the company of the same name manufactures and that can be purchased Through its websitein specific stores that are opening (sometimes temporarily) by the main capitals of the world, and even in vending machines also more frequent. They are divided into series in which the same doll is shown in different variants, which makes them highly collectible. The fashion of aesthetics Cute It has made them products that go beyond children’s public, and their usual dissemination in surprise boxes that hide their content has led them to succeed in social networks.
A viral impact. Undoubtedly, the ease of social networks to transcend borders has given Pop Mart’s thrust to be known outside China. A quick Pop Mart in Tiktok throws, only with creators of Spanish content, an infinite ristra of unboxings that have the addition that, being in many cases of surprise boxes, the users themselves, With hundreds of thousands of followersthey are the first to be surprised.
A clear precedent: Funko Pop. The nature of the dolls partly remembers the Funko Popthe doll brand that have already become mainstream Absolute, all cut by the same aesthetic pattern, and which refer to multitude of franchises and trademarks. The Pop Mart, although they have a certain common iconic character among all, are subdivided into multiple collections and each one has its own aesthetics. Of course, they also surrender to the power of the franchises and have multiple collections dedicated to Disney, Harry Potter, SpongeBob, Marvel, Barbie and a long etcetera.
The importance of authors. Pop Mart has another distinctive feature that distinguishes it from today Funko Pop: His support for designers and artists behind some of the doll lines, which gives him an air of exclusivity against more impersonal brands and also connects with another clear precedent of the phenomenon. This is the Art Toys, very expensive vinyl dolls that a couple of decades ago were epitome of modernity. Many more affordable than those, Pop Mart boasts of a designer shield With names like Lang, Ayan Deng, Pucky or Libby Frame. It is not surprising: thanks to one of them, Kasing Lung, has generated its best known property, Labubu.
Labubu sweeps. Labubu is a kind of elf with a monkey appearance and a smile that seems out of the hell itself, and has become the property of Pop Mart most selling globally: it is part of a broader collection called The Monsters, and generated 419 million dollars last year for 419 million dollars in benefits for Pop Mart. It is not, that yes, the company’s best known brand in China, where the girl-girl triumphs Molly. This is the creation of a designer there, Kenny Wong, which corroborates the good eye that Pop has had put in the foreground the creators of his icons.
Blind origins. The company was founded in 2000 by businessman Wang Ning, 38. In less than fifteen years he has managed to convert Pop Mart into one of the best known companies in China: in 2024 his actions rose 370%. His success is such that in September 2023 he opened his own attraction park in Beijing, Pop Land40 square kilometers. But it is its unstoppable world implementation that is drawing attention.
International madness. According to data you handled Time magazine130 of the company’s 530 stores at the end of last year are outside China (the first in Spain It opened in Barcelona). In 2024, its benefits for international sales rose a spectacular 375%, which corroborates the growth that Europe and the United States is having. According to him Company’s own income reportin 2024 it had benefits of 1.8 billion dollars, of which 40% came from outside China.
The viral surprise boxes. Part of the secret of Pop Mart is in the surprise boxes (or blind boxes, as the literal translation of Blind Boxes): The search for specific models, with special attention to special dolls, not described in catalogs, and that can leave each seventy and so many boxes, combine with the guarantee of not repeating surprise if you do not want. For example, if you buy a complete collection of six surprise boxes, it is known that those six They won’t have repeated dolls: The viralizable content, the gamification of the search and the commercial hook are as evident as effective.
The invasion of Chinese toys. Of course, Pop Mart is not alone in this crazy race to earn the hearts of influencers and collectors. His fiercest competitor is TOP TOYfounded much more recently, in 2020. It is owned by Minisothe Chinese low -cost store chain specialized in consumer products. In 2024, they already had benefits of 134.84 million dollars, their products focus on licensed properties, and already have different 40 IPS dolls. With the project to open a thousand stores worldwide in the coming years, it is clear that a future toy also dominated by Chinese companies awaits us.
Header | Choo Yut Shing in Flickr
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