The “next Labubu” is not a single IP or product. It is an industry. The lifestyle character brand business, which has flourished in Japan through Sanrio, Snoopy, and their competitors, is now taking root across the United States and Europe in ways few could have imagined before the rise of Popmart and the rapid expansion of Miniso and Uniqlo. The next Labubu is not just one character. It is a pop culture shift. From specialty and mid-tier retailers to big box chains, stores are being reimagined. New formats. New programs. Entirely new sections dedicated to lifestyle character brands… to be led by heritage brands like Miffy, Monchhichi, Domokun, and emerging brands like Uamou, Pyoss and Kiriko Arai. Labubu is not simply a viral moment on TikTok or the result of a K-pop co-sign… It is one of dozens, perhaps hundreds, of emerging and heritage brands quietly generating millions to billions in annual revenue. The epicenter is Tokyo, but the real driver is the influence of specific retailers and trade shows across Japan that are actively shaping global consumer behavior. Stand at specific retail for long enough and you’ll realize the tourism from America and Europe is not like before… this is a new generation armed with knowledge passed on through YouTube, and they are there with purpose, and the influence they experience and discoveries they take home are currently shaping tomorrow for everyone in our industry. What Labubu represents is the arrival of a new medium, like television or the iPhone. Popmart was one of the early “apps”. One of the first programs on a brand new channel. What comes next is the platform shift. From this point forward, there will be a clear divide between what came before and what comes after. The 13+ consumer, referenced in Hasbro’s Play to Win strategy, is the same consumer fueling explosive growth across Asia’s lifestyle character brands. And now, this shift is unfolding across the United States, Europe, and the rest of the world. You do not want to be the next BlackBerry two weeks before the iPhone launch. The winners will not be “the next” anything… but just early enough to recognize how this wave will impact all corners of the IP character business, from toys to socks, with a new perspective on media, sms metrics, and the clear importance of creating discovery through physical retail. Because physical retail where you can stand there and touch and feel both with your hands and in the heart, are going to be what’s really next. There hasn’t been a window of opportunity like this for both legacy IP and those starting from zero in decades… and what’s coming is quite literally the future of our business. Now pardon me… I’m headed back to my sofubi factory in Katsushika to make what’s not next.

Rent the jumbo signs in Times Square, Shibuya crossing and Gangnam station to put up an ad about how terrible your new brand is. Nobody will notice and you’ll be fine. A Macy’s balloon is large, but only “huge” when the world is already in love with you. Don’t skip that part.