Labubu puppets are produced in China using child labor.

Labubu are considered the best-selling and most sought-after dolls in the world, with a global trend that is now spreading everywhere, in Asia, North America and Europe, and with long lines in stores of consumers waiting for the new releases.

This success is based on two factors, both of which are highly unsustainable. First, the puppets created by the Hong Kong illustrator Kasing Lung and products from the Chinese company Pop Mart, have conquered social media (especially TikTok and Instagram), where users make videos of unboxing and showcase their collections with huge views. The hashtag #Labubu has garnered billions of views on platforms like TikTok, and celebrities around the world have featured them in their content, contributing to their international popularity. In short, more than innovation and creativity, global consumers have rewarded the virality of marketing campaigns.

Sold mainly in blind box, closed boxes where you don't know which character you will get until you open it, making collecting a "hunt for the rare piece", the Labubu are produced in hundreds of variants with collectible figures and characters as the basis, with a design between the kawaii (cute) and the creepy (funny-creepy), often with pointed ears, sharp teeth and large eyes, representing creatures from the imaginary world called The Monsters.

But the second aspect behind the success of Labubu It is decidedly more disturbing, and directly affects the production policies of these dolls, which allow for low costs and therefore super-popular market prices, by virtue of a specific condition: the massive exploitation of child labor. According to the field report conducted by the NGO China Labor Watch (CLW), in many factories producing Labubu, There are underage workers between the ages of 16 and 17, underpaid, deprived of basic rights (first and foremost safety), with work shifts that exceed 17 hours a day. The employees said they had signed incomplete or “blank” contracts, without fully understanding the terms, salary or conditions.

The company Pop Mart, which aims to achieve annual revenues of approximately €2,4 billion through its Labubu puppets, has stated that it takes the well-being of workers in its supply chain seriously, conducts regular supplier audits, and investigates allegations to take corrective action if necessary. This official defense is as banal as it is useless and rhetorical. 

Image source: POP MART/Facebook

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