Chinese toymaker Pop Mart is riding a global craze for its “ugly-cute” Labubu plush toys, with sales projected to hit $1 billion in 2025, outpacing iconic brands like Barbie and Hot Wheels.
Though they’re physical collectibles, Labubus reflect the influence of viral internet culture on real-world consumer trends. A recent New Yorker essay dubbed the aesthetic “IRL brain rot,” pointing to the way over-the-top online styles are spilling into everyday life.
The surge has sparked comparisons to the Beanie Baby mania of the 1990s, but with a distinctly Gen Z twist. On this week’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Max Zeff, and Anthony Ha dissected the toy’s runaway popularity and what it signals about the narrowing divide between the digital and physical worlds.
