Wang Ning, the founder of Pop Mart International Group, has become one of the wealthiest people in China after he sold the Labubu dolls, which created a frenzy in the pop culture. The quirky, scary-looking dolls have made the 38-year-old the 10th richest person in the country, and the youngest on the list. According to the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List, his net worth has quadrupled from $7.59 billion to $22.7 billion in a year.
The Labubu dolls have gained global fame as they became popular across Asia, Europe, and the US, with people spending millions on a single piece. The “ugly-cute” dolls, which were brought to life by Wang Ning’s Pop Mart, a Chinese toy company he founded in 2010, were first created by Hong Kong-based artist Kasing Lung in 2015 in his illustrated book series ‘The Monsters’. The characters with a toothy grin and pointy ears were inspired by Nordic fairy tales.
In 2023, the wide-eyed dolls were introduced to the market by Pop Mart and came into the company’s popular “blind box” collections. The format was popular among Gen Z and millennial buyers, who did not know which figure they would get in the box until they opened it.
In 2024, the toy gained global popularity with celebrities, including BLACKPINK’s Lisa, Kim Kardashian, Dua Lipa, Rihanna, and Bollywood actor Ananya Panday, being spotted with the doll.
Soon, the Labubu dolls evolved and became a major source of revenue for Wang Ning. They are now available in hundreds of designs and colours, ranging in sizes from small keychains to life-sized plush toys.
On June 10, a human-sized Labubu figure was sold for 1.08 million yuan ($150,275.51) at a Beijing auction house, setting a new record for the “blind box” toy as it moves from craze to collectable. The event marked the first-ever auction held dedicated to Labubu.