The latest trend in collectible toys, LABUBU, was sold at auction for 1.08 million yuan.

Recently, many friends have been paying attention to Labubu, of course, because of its commercial value.

On June 10th, at the Yongle 2025 Spring Auction, a 131cm-tall mint-colored first-generation Labubu sculpture was sold for 1.08 million yuan, setting a new record for the highest price achieved by a Labubu sculpture.

Hong Kong designer Long Jiasheng might never have imagined that the little elves in his picture books would become the top global collectible toy IP a decade later. Wang Ning, the founder of Pop Mart, might also never have thought that selling toys to adults could make him the richest man in Henan Province. Since the beginning of 2024, the share price of Pop Mart has risen by more than 11 times.

Labubu was not always so popular. In 2010, Long Jiasheng first drew Labubu in the picture book “The Magic Buka”. In 2015, he created the THE MONSTERS series, featuring a mischievous Labubu, a tail-wielding tribal leader ZIMOMO, and a pink-haired MOKOKO, among other forest spirits. In 2018, Pop Mart signed a contract with Long Jiasheng for the THE MONSTERS series. Up until 2023, Labubu’s performance was not outstanding. Among Pop Mart’s many IPs, the revenue contribution of the THE MONSTERS series, where Labubu belongs, never exceeded 10% annually. In 2023, the top-selling IP was SKULLPANDA, generating 1.025 billion yuan in revenue, while the THE MONSTERS series generated 368 million yuan.

The turning point came in 2024 when BLACKPINK member Lisa frequently carried the Labubu plush toy in public. This move was like throwing a stone into a calm lake, instantly creating ripples. Wang Ning, the founder of POP MART, stated at the 2024 performance communication meeting that the core of the success of Labubu plush toys was that POP MART pioneered the vinyl plush category. Financial report data shows that the plush category of POP MART grew by 1289% in 2024 compared to the previous year. This year, Labubu has also performed prominently in the European and American markets. Superstars like Rihanna, Dua Lipa, and David Beckham all have Labubu hanging on their bags. Sales data is even more telling. The “Heartbeat Macaron” Labubu 3.0 series released by POP MART in April sold out within seconds when it was launched online in North America. POPMART US SHOP achieved sales of 6-7 million US dollars (about 43-50 million yuan), topping the TikTok Shop US sales chart in April. According to official data disclosed by POP MART, the revenue from the North American market in the first quarter of 2025 has already approached the company’s total revenue for the entire year of 2024.

The newly launched Labubu 3.0 series blind boxes are often sold out “within minutes” in the United States, the United Kingdom and other places. In the Westfield Stratford City shopping center in London, a “scuffle” even broke out. A certain branch of Ping An Bank in Xi’an offered Labubu 3.0 series blind boxes as gifts to attract deposits. Customers who deposit at least 50,000 yuan for a fixed term of at least three months can get one.

The shortage of stock has driven up the value of Labubu. The premium of many Labubu blind boxes in the secondary market has exceeded three times. On the platform of Deyu, the price of a Labubu 3.0 blind box has risen from 99 yuan to 349 yuan. As for rarer limited-edition dolls like the Pop Mart x Vans collaboration, they have been sold at 27,999 yuan, which is about 47 times the original price of 599 yuan.

Many collectible toy platforms have also introduced the “clearly priced blind box” game. Based on market supply and demand, they set prices for Labubu dolls after opening the boxes. If it’s a hidden version, the premium is equivalent to directly earning the price of a bottle of Maotai. The transaction data of Qian Dao APP shows that the recent three-day transaction price of the hidden blind box “Self” in the Labubu 3.0 series is 3,115.2 yuan, with a premium rate exceeding 3,000%. Despite such a high premium, the transaction volume in the recent three days has reached 726.

The trading in the secondary market has turned Labubu into a new type of financial product, giving people the feeling that getting it is a sure way to make money. A netizen posted on Xiaohongshu about the Labubu Big Leader she bought on Children’s Day. Within half a month, its value increased by 600 yuan. In her note, she wrote that investing in gold or stocks is not as profitable as trading Labubu.