Article by: Alicia Hazelwood, Senior Research Analyst
Confession: I have bought into the Labubu craze. My first thought when I saw those little figures was “they are so ugly that they are cute.” And since I’ve been caught up in the fun of collecting. There’s something oddly irresistible about tearing open a blind box, hoping for the design you want. My shelf at home is proof that “just one more” often turns into a small collection.
What’s fascinating is how something that started as a niche art toy has exploded into a global phenomenon. Pop Mart’s Labubu line has fueled billions in sales, blind boxes sell out in minutes, and resale values soar. Social media is flooded with unboxings, memes, and collectors proudly sharing their finds. In a short span, Labubu went from niche to mainstream, catching people outside the fandom completely by surprise.
From a market research perspective, Labubu is a case study in how consumer behavior works with emotions, culture, and commerce intersect:
- The Power of Scarcity and Surprise: The blind box model gamifies buying, turning uncertainty into motivation.
- Counter-Positioning Works: Labubu’s offbeat design stood out in a market of “cute”, creating instant distinctiveness.
- Emotional Utility is Underrated: People aren’t just buying a toy; they are buying joy, nostalgia, and a way to express identity.
- Culture Driver Commerce: The community around Labubu (unboxings, influencers, memes) turned into a cultural event, not just a product.
For researchers, it’s a reminder that data alone can’t explain everything. To understand consumers, we need to look at a deeper mix of psychology, culture, and emotion. Labubu shows how fast markets can short when those forces align, and how unpredictable consumer passion can be.
Sometimes the richest insights come from cultural waves that seem to appear out of nowhere. Our job is to spot signals, interpret what they mean, and help brands understand why people connect so deeply.
At SMARI, this is exactly the kind of work we love—digging beneath the surface to uncover the cultural and emotional drivers that fuel consumer behavior. Because whether it’s toys, tech, or services, the real story is always bigger than the product.
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