POP MART's Share Price Hits New High Again: Why Has Labubu Become a Worldwide Craze?  

Trendsetter giant POP MART hit an all-time intraday high today, with its share price surging to HK$283.40.

 

This performance continues the company's strong upward trend since 2024—its stock price has climbed from around HK$20 at the start of the year to approximately HK$270 currently, its share price has risen by over 1250%, amazing!

Wang Ning, the founder of POP MART, has become the new richest person in Henan, China, with a net worth of US$20.3 billion.  

The "post-85" entrepreneur, only 38 years old, has transformed a grocery store in Zhongguancun, Beijing, into a trendy toy empire with a market value of over HK$300 billion in just 15 years.

 

How did he do it? And is it still advisable to buy POP MART shares?  

The IP Craze Ignites the Market  

The Labubu series is undoubtedly the core engine driving POP MART's performance explosion.

 

According to the 2024 financial report, the revenue of "THE MONSTERS" series to which this IP belongs soared from 368 million yuan to 3.04 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 726.6%—equivalent to an average daily revenue of 8.2 million yuan.  

 

The Labubu 3.0 series launched in April this year triggered a global buying spree. The blind box, originally priced at 99 yuan, has a premium of over 30 times the original price in the secondary market, with some co-branded models even fetching nearly 30,000 yuan.

 

In addition, a mint-colored first-generation Labubu prototype handcrafted by designer Long Jiasheng was auctioned for 1.08 million yuan on June 10, breaking the record for trendy toy auctions and further solidifying its status as an "art collectible".  

This fluffy little monster with nine sharp teeth, Labubu, is sweeping the world as a "phenomenal top-tier IP". In the Beverly Center of Los Angeles, people set up tents to queue at 3 a.m.; the Oxford Street store in London saw physical conflicts due to panic buying; the Thai princess even hung it on her Hermès Birkin bag to attend fashion week...  

From Niche Trendy Toys to a Global Cultural Phenomenon  

When life was not affluent, people's attention to product value mainly focused on quality and function.

 

Whether it is durable or practical determines a product's lifeblood. Conscientiously doing well in practicality was the right path for a product to endure, while marketing and hype were seen as misdirected efforts.  

 

However, with economic development, consumers now focus not only on product practicality—since most products are of good quality and similar in functionality. What consumers care more about now is emotional value rather than practical value. A doll that can neither be eaten nor used can still make young people willing to pay because it brings joy, satisfaction, and a flood of likes when posted on social media.  

This is similar to why many young people love visiting Disneyland—it's about the joy of seeing their favorite characters in person. Disneyland invests heavily in marketing each year, constantly hyping up and immersing audiences in its narrative, which is called "cultivating user awareness". For products that sell emotional value, hype is at least one of the top three driving forces of productivity.  

And hype is exactly what POP MART excels at. Scarcity marketing plus endorsements from various celebrities have become POP MART's trump card for success.  

 

POP MART is also consolidating its global expansion through multi-dimensional strategies. On the one hand, the company is accelerating store openings in overseas markets. This year, POP MART has added 31 new stores in North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region, reaching a total of 161 overseas stores, with North America and Europe accounting for 35%.  

On the other hand, POP MART is deepening product line expansion.

 

The "Labubu 3.0" series launched in April sold out in both Chinese and overseas markets, with significant premiums in the secondary market.

 

The upcoming "Wacky Mart" series to be released on June 13 is more diversified, including derivatives such as fridge magnets, water cups, and pillows, priced 30%-185% higher than ordinary figures, which is expected to further improve gross margins.  

Institutions Are Bullish: Is It Still Worth Buying?  

Recently, national institutions have raised their target prices for POP MART. Morgan Stanley increased the target price from HK$224 to HK$302, predicting a compound annual growth rate of 42% in sales from 2025 to 2027, with overseas revenue accounting for 65%.

 

Deutsche Bank stated in its report that based on the improvement in gross margins in overseas markets and new product premiums, it has significantly raised the target price from HK$200 to HK$303.

 

If you view Pop Mart as a "toy manufacturer", then it is indeed the world's most expensive "toy manufacturer" at present.The market value of this toy-making company reaches 359.6 billion yuan, with a price-to-earnings ratio (PE) exceeding 100 times.

 

If you buy its stocks now, based on Pop Mart's current profit-making speed, it would take 100 years to recoup the investment, which is indeed excessive.

 

However, the capital market is not valuing Pop Mart as a "toy manufacturer", but rather based on the concept of "China's new consumption going global".

 

In 2025, Pop Mart's first-quarter report showed that overall revenue in the first quarter increased by 165%-170% year-on-year compared to the first quarter of 2024.

 

Among them, overseas revenue increased by 475%-480% year-on-year.The enthusiasm of young people in Southeast Asia for Pop Mart is comparable to that of Apple fans chasing Apple's product launches in the past.

 

Before Pop Mart, it is hard to say that any Chinese company's toys had become popular worldwide.

 

The essence of fashion trends is determined by the power dynamics between the strong and the weak. The preferences of a dominant culture are more likely to trigger trends, which can be simply called "might makes right".

 

With China's overall economic development reaching the current level, it has already possessed the conditions to step onto the stage of "dominant culture". It is the right timing, location, and circumstances that have contributed to Pop Mart's success.

 

It is difficult to predict how Pop Mart will develop in the future, but the trend of China's new consumption going global is certain.

 

Most Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia are similar to China 15 years ago, where consumer demand has not yet been fully satisfied or tapped.

 

I once came across an interesting view: the revaluation of Chinese assets begins with Hong Kong stocks, and the revaluation of Hong Kong stocks begins with consumer companies. Pop Mart is undoubtedly among the first batch of enterprises to benefit from this.

 

In the stock market, I personally believe that the hype around Pop Mart will at least last until the end of the year, and its stock price will continue to hit new highs. Before that, it is never too late to buy.