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Labubu: Where did the toy craze start?
Labubu is all the rage these days, with celebrities and content creators leading the way. But where did it start and how?
Labubu is the bran child of Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung.
Lung, who is now based in Belgium and holds the honor of becoming the first Chinese artist to win the European Picture Book competition, began collaborating with Hong Kong toy creation brand How2work in 2011. The collab allowed him to transform his illustrations into toys.
According to a "Kapuso Jessica Soho" report, Labubu originated from a 2015 story series called "The Monsters" by Lung.
"The Monsters" is comprised of stories "The Story of Puca," Pato and the Girl" and "Miro Requiem."
In an 2019 Instagram post, Kasing Lung said Labubu is an elf character, which came straight from "The Story of Puca."
He resides in a forest, is curious about most everything, and is optimistic and kind-hearted.
It's been widely reported that in 2019, Lung began working with Pop Mart, a Chinese brand Pop Mart, which furthered The Monsters' popularity. They became collectibles and bag charms.
Apart from super cute characters, there is an element of surprise that makes collecting Labubu toys extra exciting. You never know what you're gonna get with the box you are holding.
"That's the exciting part," Margarette Tan, a collector and seller, says on KMJS. "You're wondering what color you'll be getting," among other things.
A Labubu box now retails around P15,000.
While the Labubu craze isn't limited to the Philippines — there is a Labubu theme park in China, and a Labubu-themed cafe in Thailand — it's bound to get even more crazy here as Pop Mart is set to open its first pop-up store in Manila next month.
In the report, which Unang Hirit aired on Tuesday, psychologist Raul Gana issued a reminder: "Healthy kung ito ay nagbibigay ng saya."
— LA, GMA Integrated News
