Shareholders are worried that Labubus can’t stand the test of time.
“Is POP MART’s Labubu craze crashing? Shareholders are worried that Labubus can’t stand the test of time.” — Brew Markets reporter Judith Dutton reached out to us for our comments and insights.
QUOTED EXCERPT
LA-BOO-BOO
But while the doll’s popularity in its core market hasn’t waned just yet, Pop Mart’s shareholders are focused on the future.
“At AI-tech-level price equity ratios, some Pop Mart investors are popping out of the stock and taking profits while they can before the fad turns south as so many fads do,” Running Point Capital CIO Michael Ashley Schulman told Brew Markets. “Yes, management guided to a 350% profit pop for the first half of ’25, but after a 170% year-to-date rocket ride, the stock was already priced like a rare Labubu chase figure—about 6 times sales versus Mattel’s 1.5, and a nosebleed $47 billion market cap.”
labubu sales accounted for about 23.5% of Pop Mart’s overall revenue in 2024, and while the first half of 2025 was clearly a strong one for the company, any hint of weakness in sales of its most popular product could spell disaster for the stock.
“Investors opened the blind box and found…valuation risk. Collectible frenzies can turn into landfill faster than you can say Beanie Babies,” Schulman continued.
ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS
Behind the sell-off lurks a hat-trick of worries. First, Morgan Stanley yanked the name from its focus list and Beijing state media called the blind-box model “addictive,” a one-two punch that signaled regulators could clamp down on the dopamine-loop sales mechanic.
Second, the “fad-fade” narrative is gaining traction; Funko’s 2022 inventory bonfire reminds punters how collectible frenzies can U-turn.
Third, competition is sprouting as Miniso’s newbie WAKUKU plush sold out in two hours at its Beijing flagship.
Pop Mart must prove it can spin a shared universe of characters (Skull Panda, Crybaby, et al.), license IP into theme stores and luxury collabs, and keep the regulatory wolves at bay.
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