This article focuses on the profound transformation and spatial resurgence of the plush toy market, charting its journey from a fringe category to a core consumer and emotional hub. Three major trends have emerged within the market: deepening IP collaborations, upgrading emotional interactions, and cultural IP derivatives. The IP collaboration trend breaks down barriers, connecting virtual and real life. The emotional interaction trend leverages technology to enhance interaction by empowering toys with features like heating, fragrance, and emotion recognition. The cultural IP derivative trend infuses cultural connotations through "abstract reproductions" of cultural relics and the integration of local cuisine and dialectal memes. In the commercial space, plush toys have evolved from supporting roles at the bottom of supermarkets to soothing corners of cultural and creative stores, and then to standalone stores and pop-up shops in core shopping districts of high-tier cities. Shopping malls are shifting their investment strategy towards brands that prioritize spatial design and emotional interaction. Plush toys, with their strong emotional appeal, have benefited from this. Online promotions on Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) and offline pop-up stores have formed a closed loop, and trendy brands are eager to collaborate with them, propelling them to become a powerful force in the consumer market. The essence of this change is the recognition of the value of emotional consumption by physical businesses. Plush toys are not only commodities, but also spiritual refuges and soul backup devices for urbanites. In the future, they are expected to replace traditional jewelry counters and become a new generation of spiritual landmarks. The emotional value they carry far exceeds the material itself.

Entering the trendy toy industry during its explosive growth in 2020, Letsvan founder Zhan Huiyu broke through the startup difficulties with extreme productism - he would rather give up 5 million yuan in emergency payments than destroy defective products; with a deep understanding of emotional value, he led the team to incubate popular products such as "China's No. 1 Princess IP" Youli and the phenomenal IP WAKUKU. Among them, WAKUKU took less than a year from its birth to its popularity, and it competed with Pop Mart's top-tier LABUBU. Starting from 2024, Quantum Song completed the full acquisition of Letsvan. The two parties "complemented each other's genes" to strengthen their marketing capabilities. By cooperating with Lehua Entertainment to open up celebrity channels, the SIINONO blind box launched in 2025 was sold out at its first launch, and pre-sales were scheduled until September; after the brand was upgraded to "Letsvan Dream Island", Zhan Huiyu positioned it as an open ecosystem connecting designers, artists and users, and continued to lead with the market response speed of "cheetah" - incubating 15 self-owned IPs in 4 years since its establishment, in the fiercely competitive trendy toy track, using passion and long-termism to write the growth trajectory from a dark horse startup to a new force in the industry.

This article delves into the global blind box craze, charting its journey from its roots in Japan’s "lucky bags" to a multi-billion-dollar market encompassing trendy toys, luxury goods, and more. It explores how blind boxes, driven by their ability to deliver emotional and social value—such as the joy of surprise, collectibility, and social interaction through unboxing sharing—along with the appeal of personalized experiences, have won over Gen Z and millennials across the globe. Spotlighting major players such as Pop Mart—the dominant force in the trendy toy segment, with its IP-based collections (including top-selling lines like SKULLPANDA and MOLLY), collaborations with artists, and rapid expansion in Southeast Asia and beyond—and HEAT, a luxury-focused brand partnering with over 100 high-end labels (from Givenchy to Prada) to capitalize on the trend, the piece breaks down the market’s explosive growth. From $15 blind boxes that resell for $150 to luxury blind boxes priced at $350+ that sell out within minutes (like HEAT’s offerings, which even secured investment from LVMH and Hermès family members), it uncovers how this "surprise economy" has become both a source of emotional satisfaction and stress relief for consumers and a profitable business model—solving inventory challenges for brands while fueling a global spending frenzy across social media platforms and international markets.

The global phenomenon of Labubu results from the resonance of ​​"ugly-cute aesthetics × blind box economy × celebrity marketing × emotional value"​​. It showcases the evolution of Chinese trend toys from OEM manufacturing to ​​cultural export​​, while also revealing hidden risks like speculative consumption and over-reliance on IP. Whether Labubu can become a ​​trans-generational IP​​ like Hello Kitty depends on Pop Mart's ability to build ​​sustainable emotional bonds and cultural depth​​ amid the current frenzy.

Figma Series​​ is a Japanese articulated action figure line developed by ​​Max Factory​​ and distributed by ​​Good Smile Company​​, renowned for its ​​high mobility​​ (up to 30 articulation points) and ​​extensive accessories​​. The series specializes in recreating iconic characters from anime, games, and films.

This article focuses on the trajectory of plush toys from childhood memoirs to universal cult favorites, exploring their enduring appeal across generations and social classes. From the social worker resonance evoked by IKEA's "world-weary shark," Broe, to the comforting smile of JellyCat, these adorable objects, with their unique personalities and warm touch, have become vehicles for people's emotional projection. They serve not only as emotional cushions against life's frustrations but also as social conversation starters and spiritual sustenance. In Douban groups, tens of thousands of people share their "Sharks' Daily Life." In real life, plush toys are given the status of "family" and "companions," offering effortless companionship to alleviate the loneliness and stress of adults. Despite being mass-produced products, they embody unique emotional connections and childlike innocence, becoming timeless symbols of healing. They demonstrate how, in the era of the "emotional economy," objects, through warmth and meaning, can bring fairytale-like resonance to life.

This article offers a multifaceted introduction to plush toys. It begins with a Jellycat pop-up shop resembling a "fish and chip shop," highlighting the abundance of food-related plush toys. It then explains the global plush toy craze, including the buzz surrounding related videos, the explosive sales, and the substantial and expected growth of the market. It also highlights the primary consumer demographic: older children. It then analyzes the causes of the plush toy craze, citing the therapeutic benefits and increased willingness to spend on them during the pandemic. It also notes the high prices and celebrity-themed items that fuel collectors' enthusiasm. Finally, it emphasizes that every era has its own popular gadgets, and this isn't childish. Maintaining a childlike innocence is a compelling reason to collect plush toys, and it's also a marketing tactic used by manufacturers.

The article revolves around the sudden popularity of Jellycat, a high-end British plush toy brand. It starts from its product design and marketing strategy, and analyzes the deep logic of how it builds emotional connections through personification and "playing house" experience, becoming an "emotional partner" for consumers. It not only shows its side as an emotional consumption carrier that meets the emotional needs of modern people, but also mentions controversies such as high prices and exploitation of the emotional labor of store clerks, and finally reveals the social emotional dilemma and individual survival status reflected behind it.

An insightful guide exploring the phenomenon of IP blind boxes – a cultural trend captivating young consumers. This article deciphers their unique appeal, blending mystery blind bags with popular IPs to create cute blind box collectibles. Learn how brands leverage blind box toys for marketing, discover different types like Japanese blind boxes and Korean blind boxes, understand design elements driving their success, and explore the business models and materials behind these popular blind box gifts. From cheap blind boxes to limited editions, it covers why these mystery box figures resonate as both playthings and adult collectibles, and where to find them.

This article focuses on the 2025 CTE China Toy Show & Trendy Toy Show, and selects a variety of trendy toys and collectible toys, creative goods, and food and play products. It analyzes their core competitiveness and market logic from the dimensions of IP innovation, technology integration, emotional implantation, and scene design, and shows the current situation of trendy toys upgrading from a simple entertainment carrier to a comprehensive format integrating multiple values. At the same time, it explores the deep reasons for the outbreak of trendy toys, as well as the future development direction of the industry in terms of IP creation, technology application, and market expansion.

As the "Chinese Trendy Toy Capital", Dongguan has performed well in the 100 billion trendy toy track. Its toy industry has a deep foundation. 1/4 of the world's animation derivatives and nearly 85% of China's trendy toys are produced here. The relevant output value from January to August 2024 will exceed 11.1 billion yuan. From OEM to "smart manufacturing", AI technology is accelerating its implementation. The production capacity of companies such as Weiss Trendy Toys has been greatly improved. Wo Factory has taken orders for peripheral products of "Nezha", and the revenue of a single project has exceeded last year's total output value. Original IP is exerted, Weishi Culture's "Pincool" and other in-depth exploration of intangible cultural heritage, covering hundreds of countries, and the proportion of local original output value in 2023 will exceed OEM for the first time. Policy support and the integrated development of "trendy toy +" will help Dongguan become an important force in the global trendy toy field.

The global blind box market—propelled by addictive mystery mechanics and collectible culture—has exploded into a $13.5 billion phenomenon, captivating Gen Z and millennials with IP-driven figurines like POP MART’s Molly and Sonny Angels. Yet behind the unboxing thrill lies a crisis: rampant quality defects (crooked heads, frayed seams, leaking batteries), safety hazards (exploding data cables), and environmental costs from non-recyclable plastics. With over 60,000 consumer complaints highlighting poor craftsmanship and dismissive policies, this report dissects how the industry’s “gamble-first” mindset risks eroding trust—and why ethical production and transparent design are urgent for sustainable growth.

Demeng Toy champions a new standard: premium custom blind boxes where artistry meets accountability. https://www.demengtoy.com.