Once a small art toy startup in Beijing, China, Pop Mart’s blind box strategy is not just selling toys but an exciting new ritual to its new American fanbase.
The company, founded in 2010 by Wang Ning, collaborates with various artists, who pitch original characters or help develop preexisting characters for Pop Mart, resulting in the creation of several of the brand’s most popular series – Kenny Wong’s Molly, Xiong Miao’s SKULLPANDA and Kasing Lung’s The Monsters.
Students should consider visiting one of Pop Mart’s stores, given the business’s technique of supporting individual artists, which gives Pop Mart a unique charm comparable to that of other blind boxes, such as Dreams Inc.’s Sonny Angel and Smiski.
Inspired by 1960 Japan’s street gashapon machines – capsule toy dispensers, often by companies like Bandai and Takara, that gave a random figure in exchange for a few coins – blind boxes first rose to mainstream youth culture in the 2010s, as toys like Funko: Mystery Minis, Disney’s Tsum Tsum mystery packs and blind Lego minifigure bags filled the aisles of toy shops nationally.
Like other modern blind boxes, Pop Mart items are packaged in a small, sleek and artfully designed box with graphics showcasing the entire collection it belongs to. Inside, the toy is sealed in a plastic bag to maintain the mystery.
Not knowing what’s inside creates a sense of suspense and thrill when opening the collectible.
Located at 1329 Harbor Boulevard in Costa Mesa, the establishment that opened in June 2022 is the first U.S. location of the company, which went public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2020.
Upon arrival, customers are greeted with various stands and display cases, each arranged with vibrant figurines and teaser posters, creating an inviting atmosphere.
During a visit to the store on Sunday, March 9, a Hello Kitty and Friends Fall Asleep Series ($14.99) was purchased and revealed to be LittleTwinStars Lala, one of six figures available in the collection.
The store was busy, with a line from the back of the store stretching along the right wall to the entrance.
But the Pop Mart experience goes beyond buying a random toy.
The concept taps into the thrill of chance, encouraging customers to come again and try their luck on a wide range of toys. If customers want a specific character, they may have to purchase several boxes of the same series until they, by chance, open the bag to be met with the toy of their dreams.
That could be their second or 10th box by then, but in that randomness comes the thrill of risk, and therefore, a better reason to re-enter the store and try again.
Although there is no certainty of what character customers will get per box, one thing’s for certain — there’ll be one very cute figurine waiting inside.
