Pop Mart has become a hit, and Chinese young people are crazy about "blind boxes". The reason behind it is that the economy is "too bad"?

China's economy is in its biggest crisis in decades. The performance of luxury brands has collapsed, retail malls are deserted, and consumers are only looking for the lowest-priced products. However, there is an industry that bucks the trend, and its sales performance far exceeds expectations, namely "blind box". Experts analyze that high economic uncertainty is the key to the growth of cheap little joys against the trend.

As the name suggests, "blind box" means you don't know what's inside before opening it, but the price is not cheap, and this trend has also spread among young people in Taiwan. Nowadays, a retail store from China is very popular, called Pop Mart, Ximending There are also experience stores, which often have long queues, and there are more and more sales points.

Pop Mart was founded by Wang Ning in 2010 and is headquartered in Beijing. It is famous for selling collectible brand-name toys, usually blind boxes. It has more than 500 stores in 30 countries around the world. Its performance is becoming more and more amazing. Sales on both e-commerce platforms and physical stores have grown strongly. Overseas revenue has also grown significantly. The third quarter revenue is expected to soar by 120% to 125%, and the performance far exceeds market expectations.

Emotional consumption trends

Young people especially love blind boxes, which is driven by the trend of emotional consumption. According to expert analysis, there are approximately 280 million members of Generation Z in China. They live and work at a fast pace, are under high pressure, and have high emotional needs. They are increasingly willing to spend money on items that may seem useless and expensive, but can give happiness, such as blind box toys and strange accessories. , an ornament that usually has no practical function but is a source of pleasure, entertainment, or self-expression.

Chinese buyers said that the pleasure of opening a blind box does not come from the toys inside, but from the moment of opening the box, which depends entirely on the excitement and expectation of luck, as well as the uncertainty of whether they can buy the toys they want. The blind box usually contains 12 common versions and one rare version. The common blind box costs 69 yuan, but if you buy the rare version, the price will jump ten times. Even if you only open the box and don't want the regular version, you can still sell it online.

Analysis pointed out that the "designer toys" in the Pop Mart blind box are not just painted pictures, but also contain spiritual elements that are difficult for young people to obtain in reality. Although the price is higher, they are still affordable for most young people, because Not a daily necessity that is consumed regularly.

A 29-year-old financial worker said that during the economic downturn, many people had their salaries cut. Buying blind boxes is different from large one-time expenditures such as traveling abroad. This kind of small happiness does not need to cost too much and is affordable to the younger generation. The source of happiness.

Collectible toy market expands significantly

The survey found that nearly 30% of Chinese young people are willing to pay for products with therapeutic or emotional value. Experts analyze that in addition to the pursuit of cost-effectiveness, emotional release has become an important factor affecting the decision-making of the younger generation of consumers and is a new consumption hot spot.

The "2023 Collectible Toy Industry Development Report" by the National Institute of Economic Strategy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences shows that China's collectible toy market has expanded rapidly, entering the ranks of a 100-billion-dollar industry, with the scale increasing from 6.3 billion yuan in 2015 to 34.5 billion yuan in 2021, and by 2026 The annual amount reached RMB 110.1 billion.

China's economic downturn has caused people to reduce spending, cut non-essential expenditures, and downgrade consumption. However, the consumption of trendy toys and IP-related products has increased against the trend. The change in Chinese consumer habits may reflect a hopeless future, or it may, as some economists say, In my opinion, China's economy is not that bad.