Over the past few months, you may have seen a bizarre looking furry toy hanging on the back of a rucksack or dangling off the handbag of a passer-by. Generally, the owners of these furry little monsters with exactly nine teeth aren’t children or even teenagers like you might expect, but young adults in their 20s and 30s. Labubus – as they are called – have caused quite the commotion on both social media and in real life, facilitated by people in the know who have accelerated a cult following into the mainstream.
This is quite the phenomenon of the moment, for a slightly odd-looking toy that is based on a fictional character created by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung. It is also an indication of just how successful Pop Mart has become globally since Labubu’s meteoric rise. After starting out as the equivalent of a pound shop in China, it is now, according to the Financial Times, worth $40 billion which is more than twice that of US groups Hasbro and Mattel (which own the likes of Monopoly and Barbie respectively) combined. Of course, Labubu was the driving force in allowing Pop Mart to reach the scale of 130 brick-and-mortar stores and 192 vending machine locations outside of mainland China, and even now, months after its breakthrough, it continues to remain popular.
Case in point, Japanese-owned Uniqlo has partnered with Labubu’s owner, Pop Mart to create a capsule collection celebrating Labubu The Monsters. The collaboration is launching in flagships in Japan and Asia in mid-August before releasing globally thereafter and is targeted towards young people in their 20s to 30s, piggybacking off the success Labubu toys have had within that demographic. It will include t-shirts and sweatshirts in four colours ranging from minimalist motifs to more expressive compositions featuring the creatures themselves.
But Pop Mart’s raging success in the young adult category is not a new phenomenon – it’s part of a longer history of brands leveraging youth culture to create value, relevance and visibility. In the early 1990s, Haagen-Dazs disrupted the ice cream market with its now iconic “Lose Control” campaign, positioning its product not as a children’s treat but as an adult indulgence. By aligning the brand with sensuality and sophistication, it appealed to an emerging demographic with real spending power and aspirational tastes.
Similarly, in 2023, child’s toy Barbie became a phenomenon off the back of the eponymous Greta Gerwig-directed film. Pink suddenly became the colour of the summer as adult consumers embraced the nostalgia, remixing it with modern identity politics and aesthetic trends. Mattel didn’t just sell dolls, it sold a moment, and smart brands paid attention.
“In the early 1990s, Haagen-Dazs disrupted the ice cream market with its now iconic “Lose Control” campaign, positioning its product not as a children’s treat but as an adult indulgence.”
When Haagen-Dazs created its campaign three decades ago, tapping into young adult culture, it was done through posters and tv ads, but now, the arena is social media. TikTok and Instagram have created a platform for brands to ‘go viral’ overnight, with Gen Z and millennial users sharing and emulating trends which amplify businesses to the next level. Brands are no longer simply advertising to young consumers, but are instead expected to collaborate with them, shifting the pecking order from brand-to-consumer messaging to consumer-to-brand momentum.
Labubu’s virality, for example, owes a lot to TikTok and celebrity amplification. When Rihanna (badgalriri – 149M followers), BLACKPINK’s Lisa, (lalalalis_m – 106M followers) and even fashion designer Marc Jacobs (2.1M followers) were spotted accessorising with the toy, it sparked thousands of reposts and conversations. Add to that Pop Mart’s clever use of the ‘blind box’ model – which gamifies purchasing by keeping the consumer in the dark about which toy they have bought until they open it – and you have the perfect storm of hype, collectability, and internet curiosity. At a price point of between £13.50 and £25.50, Labubus are an accessible luxury which is a sweet spot for Gen Z and millennial consumers with disposable income and a hunger for aesthetic status symbols.
‘Going viral’ also allows other brands to jump on the bandwagon, either through partnerships or by harnessing elements of trends to elevate their own image. Take Gap for example. Last year, Jungle’s song ‘Back on ‘74’ and a clip from its accompanying music video went viral on TikTok, with choreographer Will West – who also starred in the music video – becoming equally as popular. Gap saw this and decided to bring together South African singer Tyla – who was seeing success in the mainstream herself, in part, because of a dance from her song ‘Water’ which was also doing the rounds on social media – with Jungle and Will West to launch its Spring ’24 linen campaign. It was the perfect example of a brand tapping into youth culture without missing the moment whilst effectively advertising its new collection and remaining authentic. A throwback to campaigns the company had done years earlier with LL Cool J, Madonna and Missy Elliott, this iteration was a success online for a new generation, with Gap’s video alone getting 49.1 million views on TikTok. This was its highest viewed video up to that point and still remains its third most viewed post on the app.
“Successful brands are no longer just marketers, they know how to listen, when to act, and – just as crucially – when not to act.”
These case studies share a common denominator: cultural agility. Successful brands are no longer just marketers, they know how to listen, when to act, and – just as crucially – when not to act, because jumping on every trend is not only unsustainable, but could also be potentially harmful to a brand’s image. Instead, authenticity, subtlety, and community resonance matters more than ever.
As Gen Z continues to favour peer-driven content, brands must go beyond simply looking youthful, but instead, go so far as to embody youth culture. That means embracing unpredictability, collaborating with creators, and understanding that value today is built in culture, not just commerce.
Labubu might turn out to be a short-lived trend, or it could become a long-term cultural fixture like Hello Kitty which has remained popular globally for decades. Either way, it’s current success highlights that youth culture is a powerful force in shaping brand relevance today. The brands that succeed are those that engage with it thoughtfully by paying attention to timing, authenticity, and tone. In a landscape where trends move quickly and attention is hard-won, being culturally aware isn’t just a marketing strategy – it’s a business imperative.
