How did Labubus become so popular?
Pop Mart can thank BLACKPINK’s Lisa for helping them turn Labubus into the phenomenon they are today. In fact, The White Lotus star called the toy brand her “secret obsession” in a 2024 video for Vanity Fair.
“If I fly to New York, I go to Miami, I try to find Pop Mart there,” she said in the clip, “Paris, everywhere. Kind of like finding treasure.”
However, Lisa’s secret obsession didn’t stay a secret for long. Soon, other stars like Rihanna, Madonna, Kim Kardashian, Dua Lipa and David Beckham were either photographed with or posting their own pics of their Labubus.
Unboxing videos also helped drive the virality of Labubus. As Pop Mart explains on its website, Labubus are packaged in a “Blind Box,” which “keeps the collectible toy as a mystery until it is opened.”
“Blind boxes typically come in series that shows a collection,” the company’s website notes, “some figurines are rarer to find than others, these are referred to as ‘secret,’ ‘hidden’ or ‘chase’ figures.”
Shoppers can either purchase a single Blind Box, which contains one item, or they can buy a set featuring six Blind Boxes with no repeats. And videos of people opening their boxes to find out which Labubus they got can rack up thousands, if not millions, of views.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum Crystal Kung Minkoff, for instance, has posted several unboxing videos on her social media channels, captioning one, “Are you [on] the Labubu bandwagon?”
