In a world where it seems everyone is addicted to trendy tech gadgets and quick-start firms, who would have ever imagined that a strange little doll with a crooked mouth and pale face would be able to make someone a billionaire overnight?
That’s exactly what occurred when Wang Ning, a humble Chinese businessman, saw his net worth increase by ₹13,000 crore in a day due to a creepy doll named Labubu.
Labubu isn’t an ordinary doll. It does not say “smile politely” or attempt to be cute and nice. Its spiky hair, pointed ears, and crazy-innocent-stuffed eyes turn Labubu into a monster ripped straight from the imagination of a child and the sketchbook of an artist. And that is exactly why millions were drawn to it. Developed by Belgian artist Kasing Lung, Labubu was the official mascot of Wang Ning’s company, Pop Mart, which he opened in 2010. What began as a modest comic-and-knick-knack store, the business soon expanded into a global toy empire.
Wang Ning’s victory came through an act of brilliance, the blind box. Imagine opening up a box and having no idea what variation of the doll is inside and hoping it’s one of the rarer ones. It’s this thrill of chance, the act of unboxing, and the desire to finish the collection that turned Labubu from character to cultural phenomenon.
The Rise Of Labubu
In 2024 a single Labubu drop stirred such frenzy that shares of Pop Mart skyrocketed. Wang Ning gained $1.6 billion in 24 hours. To put that into perspective, that’s more than Indian film actors make in their entire lifetime made in a day in toys to collect.
But Labubu is not a toy. To the Gen Z and millennials of Asia, and increasingly of India, it’s a statement of self. In an era of perfect filters, of pressure, Labubu’s “ugly-cute” look is reassuringly not quite. It’s sloppy, haphazard and hence authentic. To own one is not to collect, but to be part of a tribe that celebrates what’s unconventional.
Labubu is not yet a niche in India but one in rapid expansion. Instagram already features photos of Indian collectors proudly displaying their shelves. The Labubu dolls previously outrageous in other countries are being retailed at between ₹1,800 and ₹7,000 by Indian middlemen. Pop culture and fashion influencer accounts are making space, marking a slow but sure cultural convergence.
What’s great in Wang Ning’s tale isn’t the money. It’s that he constructed an empire not in code, but in fantasy. Not by thinking about upending industries, but by studying emotion. He gambled on art when everyone else gambled on algorithm. He monetized narrative and got millions to fall in love with a beast they never thought would fall in love with.
While India is infected with the fever of Labubu, there’s more than a next unusual figurine to be discovered here. Wang Ning’s story teaches us that sometimes success is not being perfect, but being brave to be different.
And somewhere, on a shelf in a bedroom, Labubu quietly sits, wide-eyed, toothy smile, and smirking quietly at the world that at last gets it.
