Labubu and the Rise of Emotional Capitalism in Downturn-Era China

Reader, I became a Pop Mart convert to write this piece

Recently on Rednote, a trending topic—#经济上行时期的美 ("What does beauty look like during an economic upswing")—has been popping up in my feed. Scrolling through, one finds the answer: bold colors, confident exploration, and a sense of the future brimming with possibilities. It’s a kind of vibrant, self-assured optimism that defined China in the first two decades of the 2000s.

But what do consumption and standards look like during an economic downturn?

Labubu might be the answer.

I’ve been back in China for about a month and found myself repeatedly drawn to Pop Mart stores. Across the cities I’ve visited—Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Suzhou, Wuhan—I walked into at least half a dozen locations. For research, I told myself.

No matter the city, Pop Mart stores had shoppers, unlike many of their retail peers. At Wuhan’s SKP mall, nearly empty on a weekday evening, the only store with customers and purchasing happening was Pop Mart on the B1 level.

There’s plenty to look at and plenty to buy. But the m…