“I’d rather spend $80 on my laobu (mother) instead of Labubu” — Singaporeans on “why people are obsessed” with “stupid trends”

China’s ‘Blind Box’ Magic Breeds Millions of Peter Pans​

Pop Mart and its viral Labubu toys are giving underemployed young Chinese a way to daydream and escape.
29 October 2024 at 4:00 AM SGT
By Shuli Ren
Shuli Ren is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Asian markets. A former investment banker, she was a markets reporter for Barron’s. She is a CFA charterholder.


Avoiding adulthood in China, one blind box at a time.

Avoiding adulthood in China, one blind box at a time.
Photographer: Chen Yuyu/Visual China Group/Getty Images
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Almost four years after China launched its big consumer tech crackdown, a new breed of companies are catering to underemployed urban youth, and making billions of dollars off their desire to daydream and escape.

The most successful is perhaps Beijing-based Pop Mart International Group Ltd. The toymaker is on track to generate 11 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) in sales and 2.4 billion yuan in net income this year. Its Hong Kong-listed shares have soared 240%, making 37-year-old founder Wang Ning, who owns roughly half of the company, a billionaire a few times over.
 
Nothing better to do.
But it is still better than gansiokbin trying to harass people to la her big bu bu.
 
  • Labubu, a furry plushie with an unsettling grin and serrated teeth, is all the rage in Asia.
  • Sold by Chinese toymaker Pop Mart, the toys fly off the shelves.
  • The toy's popularity comes from celebrity endorsements and providing adults with emotional comfort.
Grace Lee remembers the first time she saw a Labubu. It had rabbit-like ears and spikey teeth — and her immediate thought was that it was ugly.

But one day, the switch flipped, Lee, 36, said. After a colleague gifted her one in July, she started to look at it differently. "I don't know why, but I started collecting them," said the Singaporean, who works in operations.
 
Sinkies are retards
hanor, i'd rather pay 50 dorar to la-kopi both the orifices and use the remaining 30 dorar for wet wipes and disinfectant, depending on how big the holes are and how many fingers can masuk :rolleyes:
 
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