Overview

• Fans at Comic-Con and online restocks have developed app hacks and URL manipulation tactics to outpace other buyers and secure limited Labubu dolls.
• A growing cottage industry of Chinese "toy surgeons" is repairing and restoring Labubu plushies for collectors, generating millions in revenue.
• Chinese customs authorities and Shanghai police have carried out major operations, seizing thousands of Lafufu knockoffs and dismantling underground counterfeit networks.
• Pop Mart has refined its Pop Now gamified platform, tightening restrictions after buyers exploited loopholes to hoard stock.
• People’s Daily and other state media have heralded Labubu as a symbol of "Created in China", further elevating the brand’s global image.