Labubu’s Viral Twin: Meet Lafufu

As the “ugly-cute” Labubu dolls by Chinese toy giant Pop Mart go global, a new character has entered the scene: Lafufu, a wildly viral bootleg with misshapen features and meme-worthy charm.

Originally a joke among designer toy fans, Lafufu quickly exploded into an online phenomenon, spawning hashtags, memes, and even walking robotic fakes.

With counterfeits flooding markets, especially from Yiwu, China, Pop Mart took legal action, applying to trademark “Lafufu” to protect its intellectual property.

Despite retailing official Labubu dolls for as little as $14, Pop Mart’s limited releases and blind-box strategy made the toy hard to get, fueling black market demand and skyrocketing resale prices.

China’s regulators stepped in too. On June 9, Yiwu authorities launched a crackdown, wiping fake Labubus off shelves. Still, knockoff vendors pivoted, selling only clothes or quirky parodies to stay in business.

Pop Mart isn’t laughing. Over 63,000 fake Labubu products were seized this year alone, and the company’s brand protection efforts reflect a bigger push in China to protect creative IP and curb counterfeits.