In the current consumer and investment fields, Pop Mart and meme coins have become phenomenal entities of notable attention. The former, using trendy toys as a carrier, has sparked a collection craze globally, shaping a unique trendy culture; the latter has continuously gained attention in the crypto market, attracting numerous investors through its unique value logic.
Though seemingly in different tracks, they actually share many commonalities in value logic, with transforming hot events into cultural symbols being key to their sustained value.
I. Hot Events: Network Transmission and Attention Waves
In 2025, Labubu, a trendy IP emerging from Pop Mart, undoubtedly became a brilliant star in global cultural and commercial domains. Labubu is not a traditionally sweet and cute image; instead, its bizarre Nordic elf style precisely strikes the inner demand of Generation Z for personality expression.
From 2024, Labubu frequently appeared in global celebrities' social media updates. Blackpink's Lisa sharing a Labubu pendant on Instagram triggered fans' crazy pursuit; the Thai princess using Labubu as an Hermès bag accessory made it famous in fashion circles; Rihanna appearing at Los Angeles airport with a pink Labubu drew media and fans' attention. These celebrity effects, like sparks, quickly ignited Labubu's global popularity, gradually moving it from the trendy toy circle to public view, becoming a global social currency.
In product releases, Labubu's third-generation silicone plush series "High Energy Ahead" immediately triggered a buying frenzy. On domestic e-commerce platforms, products sold out instantly; in overseas stores, fans were even more passionate, queuing from dawn. At Pop Mart stores in Chicago, London, and Tokyo, fans wrapped in sleeping bags waited overnight, just to buy their desired Labubu blind box. The original price was 99 yuan, while hidden editions were resold in secondary markets for thousands or even tens of thousands of yuan, with price surges that were shocking.
Not only did it dominate the trendy toy market, but it also successfully crossed over, extending its influence into the crypto world. Simultaneously in the crypto space, the L-ABUBU coin based on Labubu's image was equally impressive. From May 14 to 19, its market value skyrocketed from tens of thousands to 18 million USD, with a 24-hour trading volume of 9.5 million and a rapidly increasing number of token holders. Such rapid market value and trading volume growth is extremely rare in the crypto market.
II. Emotional Expression: Personality Expression and Identity Needs
Whether Pop Mart's trendy toys or meme coins, a crucial reason for their popularity is satisfying consumers' and investors' emotional expression needs.
For Generation Z, growing up in an era of information explosion and cultural diversity, they emphasize self-personality display, desiring to stand out from the group and possess a unique identity. Labubu's bizarre, distinctive styling seems to loudly declare "I am a unique existence", highly resonating with Generation Z's inner demands. Meanwhile, the blind box purchase format, full of uncertainty and surprise, satisfies young people's curiosity about new things and pursuit of scarcity. When they draw a hidden edition, they gain not just a toy, but a capital to showcase their unique taste and luck in social circles, thereby obtaining strong community recognition.
Taking the Thai market as an example, Labubu's popularity exceeded imagination. From celebrities to ordinary young people, Labubu became a symbolic icon of street fashion, with the Thai Tourism Bureau even conferring the title of "Magical Thailand Experience Official". Here, Labubu is no longer just a toy, but has evolved into social capital and an important carrier for people to display themselves and gain recognition in social interactions.
In the meme coin domain, investors' participation equally contains strong emotional factors. Meme coins' value is not based on traditional financial fundamentals like corporate profitability or asset scale, but more closely connected with community members' emotions and consensus.
Taking LABUBU coin as an example, its price increase largely stems from community members' love for the Labubu IP and optimistic expectations of its future value. In this virtual crypto community, holding LABUBU coins becomes a way for investors to express cultural recognition, finding a sense of belonging through token trading while hoping to increase wealth through price appreciation, which further strengthens their participation enthusiasm and emotional investment.
III. Speculative Arbitrage: Artificial Scarcity and Financial Design
Speculative arbitrage plays a crucial role in the value realization process of both Pop Mart and meme coins.
In Pop Mart's trendy toy market, blind box hidden edition mechanisms artificially create product scarcity. Due to extremely low hidden edition probabilities, they become market-scarce, triggering significant price increases. This price surge attracts numerous speculators who purchase blind boxes not out of toy love, but expecting profits by drawing hidden editions and reselling at high prices in secondary markets. In secondary trading markets, Labubu hidden editions' prices far exceed original prices, with markup ratios reaching several or even dozens of times. For instance, a 99 yuan regular Labubu might reach 2,300 yuan in secondary markets, over 20 times its original price. This massive price difference attracts many speculators, forming a "gambling"-like market atmosphere.
In meme coin markets, speculative arbitrage characteristics are even more apparent. Meme coin prices often fluctuate dramatically, driven not by traditional economic factors but primarily by market sentiment and capital flow. Using LABUBU coin as an example, its market value could surge from hundreds of thousands to 18 million USD in a short time, backed by massive speculative capital. Aided by social media, this capital continuously drives up prices by exploiting investors' fear of missing out. In this process, early investors realize substantial profits by buying low and selling high. However, such price increases based on emotion and speculation often lack solid support; once market sentiment changes, prices might rapidly plummet, exposing late investors to significant loss risks.
IV. Community Empowerment: Mass Communication and Value Co-creation
Communities play a crucial role in value formation and transmission for both Pop Mart and meme coins.
In Pop Mart's community ecosystem, social media platforms become important bases for Labubu's transmission. On platforms like TikTok and Instagram, #Labubu topics showcase numerous unboxing videos, styling shares, and "doll wall" displays. These contents attract millions of followers, with some accounts accumulating millions of fans in a short time. Through user-generated content (UGC) transmission, Labubu's image and culture spread widely, attracting more potential consumers. Meanwhile, Pop Mart enhances community member interaction and stickiness by hosting offline activities and fan gatherings, further consolidating Labubu's position in fans' hearts. In these community activities, fans can share collection experiences, exchange Labubu appreciation, forming a positive community atmosphere and achieving brand-consumer value co-creation.
The community of meme coins also has a strong influence. Taking the LABUBU coin as an example, content posted by crypto KOLs on X platform (formerly Twitter) can quickly trigger heated discussions and attention from community members. Community members continuously expand its visibility and influence through interactions on social media, such as likes, reposts, and comments. Meanwhile, community members actively participate in the promotion and operation of the LABUBU coin by creating related communities, organizing online activities, attracting more investors, and jointly promoting its value growth. This self-propagation and collaboration among community members form a powerful network effect, enabling the LABUBU coin to rapidly rise in the crypto market.
V. Sustained Value: From Emotional Expression to Cultural Symbol
Although Bubble Mart and meme coins achieved rapid value growth in the short term through emotional expression, speculative arbitrage, and community empowerment driven by hot events, transforming hot topics into culturally influential symbols is crucial for sustained value.
For Bubble Mart, Labubu is no longer just a trendy toy image but has gradually evolved into a cultural symbol. It represents the personality, attitude, and lifestyle of Generation Z, and this cultural connotation gives Labubu a unique competitive advantage in the trendy toy market. To further consolidate and expand the influence of this cultural symbol, continuous innovation and expansion are necessary. On one hand, in product design, they continuously introduce new products, incorporating different cultural elements and trendy trends to inject new vitality into Labubu. On the other hand, they strengthen cross-industry collaborations with fashion brands, art exhibitions, film and entertainment, and other fields through diverse cooperative methods, allowing Labubu's cultural symbol to penetrate broader areas and attract consumers from different circles, thereby achieving sustained value growth.
In the meme coin field, transforming hot topics into cultural symbols is equally core to achieving sustained value. Essentially, Bitcoin is also a meme coin that initially was just an experimental project in a geek community. However, over time, Bitcoin gradually evolved into a cultural symbol representing decentralization and free financial concepts, attracting the attention of numerous global investors and supporters. Despite Bitcoin's price volatility, the cultural connotation behind it has always maintained its important position in the crypto market.
For LABUBU coin and other meme coins, achieving long-term value growth cannot rely solely on short-term hot topic speculation and speculative behaviors. Instead, they need to build a unique cultural value system and cultivate long-term community member loyalty. This can be achieved by clarifying the project's vision and mission, promoting community autonomy, and conducting activities related to culture and art, making LABUBU a symbol representing specific cultural values and thus gaining enduring vitality in the crypto market.
In conclusion, Bubble Mart and meme coins share many similarities in their value logic. They both leverage hot events to trigger trends, attract audiences by satisfying emotional expression needs, achieve price fluctuations through speculative arbitrage, and rely on community empowerment to spread and grow value. Successfully transforming hot events into culturally influential symbols is the key to breaking through short-term popularity limitations and achieving sustained value growth. Whether in the trendy toy market or the crypto currency field, deeply understanding this value logic holds significant implications for enterprises, investors, and related practitioners, helping them grasp market trends and achieve sustainable development and returns.
