By Katia Torres
Over the past decade, the toy industry has undergone a wave of innovation, where technology and creativity collide to redefine play. From hoverboards that promise futuristic advancements to AI-powered robots that blur the line between toy and companion, innovation has become the toy industry’s lifeblood. However, amid this technological revolution, it is often the simplest ideas that capture the world’s attention. Such a concept is the Blind Box: a sealed package that contains randomly distributed toys and products, so the buyer is oblivious to what toy they will receive out of the given options.
Blind boxes first emerged in Japan in the 1980s, where they were known as Fukubukuro, or “lucky bags.” Blending convenience, collectability, and the thrill of chance, blind boxes have become a major consumer phenomenon across Asia and beyond, continuing to gain traction in the U.S and Europe in less than 10 years. Due to this, the global blind-box market is projected to grow from roughly 2.5 billion USD in 2025 to over 4 billion USD by 2034. China’s Pop Mart, a brand built around collectible blind-box figurines, has taken what was once niche and turned it into a global business, becoming a worldwide toy powerhouse. After experimenting with a temporary shop in London, the company cemented its European presence with a flagship store in Paris, underscoring not only its meteoric rise but also the surging popularity of blind box toys worldwide. In 2024 the company reported revenue of 1.78 billion USD in 2024, driven in part by strong overseas growth. In Q1 2025, overseas revenue surged 165-170% year-on-year, with the Americas and Europe posting the fastest growth.
This business model works remarkably well because it taps into a mix of psychological and community-based dynamics. The “repeat-purchase loop” is central: since buyers don’t know which figure they’ll receive, the thrill of “chasing the rare variant” encourages multiple purchases. Meanwhile, social communities and online content serve as powerful amplifiers. Unboxing videos on TikTok and Instagram, resale hype, and collector forums all fuel the emotional pull of surprise. One report from Human Centric Group found that 33% of global shoppers are “community-oriented,” and 16% purchased collectibles in the past year.
At the same time, intellectual property (IP) infrastructure is key to sustainability of the Blind Box business model. Companies that own or manage their character IP, rather than relying on generic toys, can control drop cadence, scarcity, aesthetics, and the tone of the secondary-market ecosystem. As Pop Mart Daily notes, Pop Mart is “not just a toy company but an IP company,” carefully curating its creative universe. Finally, globalization and retail diversification have allowed Pop Mart to reach fans worldwide through physical stores, automated “roboshops,” online platforms, and pop-ups, further cementing its status as a pioneer in the business of surprise.
Among Pop Mart’s IPs, Labubu (designed by Hong Kong illustrator Kasing Lung) has become its breakout hit and a compelling case study in how design, surprise, and hype converge to drive business outcomes. First introduced in 2015 and launched in blind-box format in 2019, Labubu has since evolved into a cultural and commercial phenomenon. According to DemandSage, the Monsters Labubu series generated 677 million USD in revenue in the first half of 2025 alone, a steep jump from 418 million USD in all of 2024. Its fan base is notably young and female, with roughly 60% of buyers being women aged 25–34. Labubu’s rarity has also fueled a booming secondary market, with ultra-rare Labubu figures selling for over USD 150,000 at auction.
Pop Mart’s success in the blind-box market is underpinned by strategic business practices that have transformed small toys into global phenomena. The company employs limited drops and releases secret “chase” variants, tactics that create scarcity and encourage repeat purchases. This scarcity model keeps collectors engaged and fuels a sense of exclusivity that encourages customers to buy multiple boxes in pursuit of rare finds. Beyond the product itself, community engagement and content creation play a crucial role. Social-media unboxings, collector clubs, and an active secondary market cultivate an emotional and social dimension to the buying experience, turning each purchase into part of a shared cultural moment.
However, the company faces a number of risks and challenges as it continues to scale. There is potential saturation risk: if the novelty of blind boxes fades, consumer engagement and repeat purchases may decline. In the U.S., for example, the proportion of first-time Pop Mart shoppers dropped from roughly 60% to under 50% after June
2025. Another growing concern is the proliferation of counterfeits, such as imitation products like “Lafufu,” which threaten brand integrity and could lead to legal and regulatory complications. Moreover, the blind-box mechanism has drawn ethical scrutiny, with critics comparing it to gambling due to its variable-reward design, raising questions about marketing practices and youth protection. Operationally, balancing scarcity with global scale poses its own challenge; maintaining the mystique of limited editions while meeting worldwide demand requires complex logistics and manufacturing discipline.
From a broader business perspective, the blind-box trend, and Labubu in particular, illustrate key insights into consumer psychology and modern retail. Emotional engagement outweighs product specifications; customers are buying not just a figure but a story, a sense of community, and the excitement of discovery. As CEO Wang Ning put it, “Buying trendy toys is about purchasing a sense of small happiness and satisfaction.” The synergy of visual culture, scarcity, and social media has propelled Labubu into a global icon, transforming what was once a niche collectible into a mass-market lifestyle product. IP ownership lies at the center of this business model – the box functions merely as a vehicle for delivering the storytelling and branding behind each character.
The company’s hybrid retail-digital-community model reflects the evolution of consumer engagement, integrating online content, physical stores, and resale platforms to sustain cultural relevance. Yet global expansion remains both an opportunity and a challenge; successful growth into diverse markets requires cultural
sensitivity, operational efficiency, and continuous creative reinvention. For Labubu specifically, Pop Mart envisions long-term brand endurance. As one company executive told Business Insider, “We want Labubu and our other characters to have the staying power of Mickey Mouse.”
The blind-box economy is far more than a passing retail trend; it is a fusion of design, psychology, scarcity economics, and digital culture that has redefined modern consumerism. Labubu stands at the center of this evolution: a once-niche character turned into a billion-dollar asset. For business strategists, Pop Mart’s model offers valuable lessons on how to monetize emotion and collectability, sustain hype without losing authenticity, and scale a brand built on surprise into a lasting global enterprise.
Works Cited
Business Insider. “A Pop Mart Exec Wants Labubu and Other Blind Box Characters to Have Mickey Mouse’s Staying Power.” Business Insider, Sept. 2025, https://www.businessinsider.com/pop-mart-labubu-blind-box-characters-mickey-mouse-2025- 9.
Collectiblepedia. “How Pop Mart’s Blind Box Craze Became the Next Big Thing.” Collectiblepedia, 26 May 2025, https://collectiblepedia.com/2025/05/26/how-pop-marts-blind-box-craze-became-the-next-big thing/.
Consumer Edge. “Opening the Blind Box: Pop Mart Turns a Tricky Corner in the U.S.” Consumer Edge, July 2025, https://www.consumeredge.com/resources/insights/opening-the-blind-box-pop-mart-turns-a tricky-corner-in-the-us/.
Futu News. “Pop Mart’s Wang Ning: We Are Not Just a Blind-Box Company.” Futu News, Apr. 2025, https://news.futunn.com/en/post/8527514/pop-mart-s-wang-ning-we-are-not-a-blind.
How They Began. “Wang Ning and the Blind-Box Controversy.” How They Began, May 2025, https://www.howtheybegan.com/stories/wang-ning-pop-mart-blind-box-addiction-controversy .
Human Centric Group. “Labubu Blind Boxes: The Marketing Power of Surprise Toys.” Human Centric Group, Mar. 2025, https://humancg.com/labubu-blind-boxes-the-marketing-power-of-surprise-toys/.
Le Monde.fr. “Labubu Craze Leads to Shortages and a Surge in Counterfeits.” Le Monde, 24 Aug. 2025,
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2025/08/24/labubu-craze-leads-to-shortages-and surge-in-counterfeits_6744683_19.html.
Pop Mart Daily. “A Full English Translation of Pop Mart CEO Wang Ning’s Interview with CCTV.” Pop Mart Daily, May 2025, https://www.blindboxdaily.com/pop-mart-news/a-full-english-translation-of-pop-mart-ceo-wa ng-nings-interview-with-cctv.
TCN Vend. “Blind-Box Boom Sweeps Europe and the U.S.: Pop Mart Accelerates Global Expansion.” TCN Vend, Feb. 2025, https://www.tcnvend.com/blind-box-boom-sweeps-europe--us-pop-mart-accelerates-global-expansion-703.html.