They aren’t playing around.
A rare Labubu sold last week for a record-breaking $10,500 on eBay, making it the most expensive of the viral ugly-cute toys on the platform.
The grey-brownish doll is rocking Vans streetwear — including sneakers designed by the popular skater brand, a Vans sweatshirt and a blue and orange hat reading “The Monsters” — the series of Labubu characters it belongs to.
This little skater monster initially came out back in 2023 as one of Pop Mart’s wildly popular blind boxes, as a collaboration between the shoe brand and Labubu.
Its original retail price was $85, meaning its resale value was 125 times more.
Labubu has become a hot commodity on secondary markets, and experts have told Forbes they can make legitimate investments, driven by Pop Mart’s limited supply model.
“Their unique look and general appeal will make them a strong market collectible for years to come,” predicted Lori Verderame, a collectible appraiser with her own show on the History Channel.
Alex Fung, pop culture consignment director at Goldin Auctions, said he thinks the early Labubus are the ones that will best hold their value.
Pop Mart typically sells Labubus for $20 to $40 in “blind boxes” — meaning buyers doesn’t know which one they’ll get until they open it.
But it’s the so-called “secret” Labubus — the limited editions with odds of getting one in a blind box as slim as 1 in 72 or even 1 in 144 — that are flipping for thousands on resale sites.
Another example is the pink “secret” edition of the “Catch me if you like me” doll, released in limited numbers in early 2024, which recently sold for $2,000 on eBay.
Labubus sell out instantly during their weekly drops — with in-person restocking at their stores at 10 a.m. Friday, and online at 9 p.m. Thursday.
People have lined up before dawn, describing release day as “Labubu Hunger Games” in the UK, with Labubus sometimes pulled from stores over chaos and fighting.
The creepy, toothy creatures were first designed a decade ago by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung, who said they were inspired by Nordic mythology and supernatural folklore.
He licensed his designs to Chinese company Pop Mart in 2019, who turned them into collectible plush toys. Its CEO, 38-year-old Wang Ning, saw his fortune jump from $2 billion last year to $22 billion amidst the craze, according to Forbes.
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