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Your source for news, updates and guidance on all things trademarks and intellectual property.

Cultural CapitalHow Pop Mart’s Trademark and IP Strategy Creates Global Fan Culture

Helenmarie Edem | January 27, 2025
12 min read

Helenmarie Edem is a trademark litigation and prosecution attorney based in Oklahoma City. She serves as Of Counsel with Hughley Smith Law, PC, and recently joined Goolsby | Proctor, P.C. as an Associate Attorney. She is passionate about protecting clients’ brands as well as advising on business matters. Helenmarie graduated from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 2022, where she was a member of the Sports, Intellectual Property, & Entertainment Law Association, a Holloway Inn Student Member, and President of the Black Law Students Association. In her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, watching anime, and gaming.

Introduction

The blind box model has captivated consumers with its surprise element and emotional resonance. Since its rise in the 2010s, brands like Pop Mart have revolutionized the market by introducing trademarkable characters such as Molly and Labubu. This intellectual property is a cornerstone of brand identity and growth for blind box brands. This article explores how Pop Mart’s unique IP strategy fuels its global success and examines key lessons other brands can learn.

The Blind Box Model and Its Appeal

A blind box is a sealed package that contains an unknown item/product.1 The concept is influenced by Japanese Lucky Bag and Gashapon toy machines. The Lucky Bag is a promotional item sold at department stores during the New Year containing surprise items.2 Gashapon toy machines are capsule vending machines featuring items from “2-D culture and video games, etc.,” using special editions for publicity.3

It wasn’t until around 2010 that the blind box industry was introduced in the United States. The early blind boxes predominantly focused on trendy toys and anime dolls. With this model still on the rise, companies have created unique characters that capture the minds of diverse consumers. Most notable are characters featured in the blind box series made by Pop Mart including Dimmo, SkullPanda, Molly, and The Monsters.

As the blind box model gains popularity, trademarks play a crucial role in establishing brand identity, protecting designs, and fostering consumer loyalty. Pop Mart exemplifies how strategically-crafted intellectual property can foster deep consumer loyalty and elevate brand identity.

Pop Mart’s Rise and Intellectual Property Strategy

Pop Mart is a Chinese pop culture and entertainment brand established in 2010 by Wang Ning.5 Pop Mart seeks to celebrate daily moments and inspire through designer toys and experiences.6 Last year, it  announced a year-on-year revenue growth of 120-125% for the third quarter, driven by a 55-60% increase from the Chinese mainland and an impressive 440-445% surge in overseas markets.7 Key to Pop Mart’s rapid expansion is their strategic marketing methods, forming partnerships with well-known brands while simultaneously developing proprietary IP.

Pop Mart first partnered with a well-known Hong Kong artist, Kenny Wong. Wong created Molly in 2006, a figurine of a young girl with emerald eyes and a pouty mouth.8 Pop Mart acquired Wong’s copyright for Molly in 20169 and their first blind box series featured Molly. By transforming the designs of popular artists into tangible products, Pop Mart capitalized on Wong’s fanbase, resulting in a significant sales boost. This success prompted the company to replicate the process with other renowned Hong Kong-based artists.

While growing its own roster of characters under the Pop Mart brand, Pop Mart has secured licensing deals with companies including Disney, Universal, Warner Bros., Sanrio, and the NBA, to develop products appealing to a global audience.10

One of Pop Mart’s most successful collaborations was a collection featuring Disney princesses, capitalizing on the Disney princesses’ iconic status and the emotional connection consumers have with these characters. This collaboration, like many others Pop Mart has undertaken, showcases its ability to build on the fame of well-known characters. Pop Mart didn’t merely replicate the classic Disney princesses, but rather reimagined them in Pop Mart’s unique style.

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Brands and products with content derivatives and widespread popularity are considered valuable IP12, and Pop Mart excels at leveraging their commercial potential through strategic partnerships. Such collaborations also enable the company to capitalize on the emotional connections that established brands have built with their audiences, fostering continued engagement and loyalty. This approach has allowed Pop Mart to markedly grow its fan base.13

Although strategic collaborations are central to Pop Mart’s creative process, the company also employs a robust set of methods to develop and protect its character designs and brand elements, ensuring the exclusivity and integrity of its intellectual property.

Development

Pop Mart excels in character and brand development through various avenues. The success of collaborations with local artists has laid the foundation for the company to establish an in-house team of designers.14 This team creates original designs that align with Pop Mart’s unique aesthetic and market demands while the company actively seeks out new talent to expand its creative repertoire.15

Proprietary products are Pop Mart’s primary revenue source.16 According to their 2024 Prospectus report, proprietary products are divided into two categories: Artist IPs and licensed IPs. This year, Artist IPs accounted for 81% of the company’s revenue, a significant increase from 37.2% in 2019. This remarkable growth highlights the importance of cultivating and maintaining proprietary IP, underscoring its role as a key driver of long-term success and competitive advantage.

Pop Mart leverages insights from global and local trends in art, fashion, and consumer preferences to guide its design. Most of Pop Mart’s collections include a hidden or secret character, adding an element of surprise and exclusivity. In a typical 12-box series, the chances of finding the hidden character are just 1 in 144,17 driving consumer interest and repeat purchases.

Pop Mart employs a “horizontal and vertical approach” to IP development.18 Horizontal integration allows businesses to acquire competitors or complementary firms,19 consolidating valuable IP assets such as trademarks, patents, or proprietary technologies, thereby strengthening market position and achieving economies of scale. Vertical integration enables companies to secure greater control over their supply chain, protecting trade secrets, proprietary manufacturing processes,20 and ensuring the consistent quality of IP-based products or services. Additionally, reducing dependency on third parties minimizes the risk of IP leaks, ensuring stronger safeguarding of core assets and driving long-term innovation and profitability.

Vertically, popular characters like Molly and Labubu, known for strong consumer engagement, see 6-8 new series annually, while moderately successful characters have 2-4 series. The company also introduces seasonal models, such as the Christmas-themed Molly’s Castle Miracle Box series. Horizontally, Pop Mart’s in-house designers consistently create new characters for market testing, ensuring a steady stream of fresh products for loyal and new customers.21

Creating a unique product is only part of the equation; effective marketing is essential to capturing consumer interest and ensuring its success in the marketplace. Beloved characters deeply connect with fans’ emotions and cultural identities within the pan-entertainment industry, where multi-level products are developed from IP such as games, anime, drama, films, and fiction.22 This connection draws significant attention, generates organic traffic, and amplifies reach through powerful dissemination efforts.

Protection

Pop Mart actively protects its character designs and brand elements by employing a robust IP strategy involving strong trademark protections and well-structured licensing agreements. Through these efforts, Pop Mart preserves the unique identity of its IP while ensuring alignment with the brand’s creative direction. These strategies safeguard against infringement, maintain brand consistency across global markets, and enhance consumer confidence.

Pop Mark has trademark registrations for its iconic characters like Molly, Dimoo, Skullpanda, Pucky, and The Monsters. These trademarks help Pop Mark establish exclusive rights to the characters, covering their names, designs, and distinctive features. Plus, these registrations enable Pop Mart to maintain control over merchandising, licensing, and other commercial ventures, meanwhile preventing infringement and enhancing brand recognition and marketability.

Pop Mart also secures its own copyrights for original artwork and designs to maintain control over the commercial use and artistic direction of its IP.23 These measures ensure that Pop Mart not only preserves the unique identity of its characters but also strengthens its ability to scale them across markets worldwide.

Additionally, Pop Mart actively nurtures partnerships with independent designers and develops proprietary IP, such as Skullpanda, through exclusive agreements that safeguard the creative and artistic integrity of these designs.24 These partnerships include collaborations with renowned artists like Kenny Wong for Molly and Kasing Lung for Labubu (The Monsters).25

Trademark Registration and Protection in the Collectibles Market

Pop Mart has set an excellent example for others in the toy industry looking to protect their valuable IP. A company looking to protect their products in the collectible toy market must follow several key steps: selecting a distinctive and memorable brand name, conducting a comprehensive trademark search, filing the trademark under the appropriate goods classification, and lastly, monitoring the trademark.26

Choosing a Distinctive and Memorable Brand Name

A strong brand is one that people can remember, spell, pronounce, and find at the top of the search results without trouble.27 A memorable and easily pronounceable name enhances brand recognition, mainly through word of mouth. Additionally, a versatile name supports adaptability, enabling expansion into diverse markets, products, collaborations, and evolving trends without restricting growth potential.

Looking to Pop Mart as an example, although the exact origin of Pop Mart’s name remains uncertain, it can be inferred that “Pop” reflects the company’s focus on pop culture and trends, and “Mart” refers to their online shopping experience as well as their retail presence. This name doesn’t limit them to only one product and leaves room for expansion.

Conducting a Comprehensive Trademark Search

Conducting a trademark search is crucial for toy brands to avoid infringement, costly disputes, or rebranding. It ensures a unique identity, builds consumer trust, and protects IP, safeguarding the brand’s equity and long-term success in a competitive market.

Pop Mart’s initial trademark search is not publicly available, but they have actively pursued trademark registrations for “POP MART” as well as their products, like “MOLLY” in various jurisdictions. For instance, they filed a trademark application with the USPTO on May 6, 2020, registered on December 21, 2021.28 Pop Mart also filed a trademark application on July 14, 2024, with foreign priority claims in China and Hong Kong.29 These actions highlight the importance of proactive trademark protection in establishing and maintaining a strong, globally recognized brand in the competitive toy industry.

Filing the Trademark Application with the Appropriate Goods Identified

Filing your trademark application with the appropriate goods identification is critical to ensuring the proper scope of protection for your brand. The goods identification defines the specific products or services your trademark will cover, creating a clear boundary for its use and enforcement. A well-crafted identification not only strengthens your application but also minimizes the risk of rejection or opposition due to vague or overly broad descriptions.30 For toy brands like Pop Mart, accurately identifying goods—such as “collectible toy figurines” —helps secure exclusive rights in their market segment while avoiding conflicts with existing trademarks.

Monitoring and Protecting Your Trademark

Monitoring and protecting your trademark is essential to maintaining its value and exclusivity. Regular monitoring helps identify unauthorized uses or potential infringements, allowing you to take swift action before they harm your brand.

An example of this is how quickly Pop Mart responded to the unauthorised sale of Labubu – shaped food in a restaurant based in Singapore.31 In November last year, Pop Mart discovered that vendors had been creating and selling Labubu-inspired desserts, cakes, and other food items that closely resembled the characters’ design, all without obtaining proper permission. These unauthorized creations, featuring detailed reproductions of Labubu‘s likeness, constituted violations of Pop Mart’s IP rights.  Pop Mart publicly announced they were aware and would take legal action and the vendors halted sales immediately.32 For brands like Pop Mart, vigilant trademark protection safeguards their reputation, strengthens consumer trust, and secures their competitive edge in the marketplace.

Managing Multiple IP Portfolios: The Pros and Cons

For a company like Pop Mart, managing large IP portfolios is complex, yet it provides a strategic advantage. This approach offers unique opportunities for growth and diversification but also presents challenges that require careful navigation.

Pros

  1. Diversified Revenue Streams: By developing and managing a large IP portfolio, Pop Mart can target different market segments, cater to varied consumer preferences, and increase revenue potential.
  2. Stronger Brand Identity: A diverse range of characters and designs, such as Molly or Skull Panda, helps establish Pop Mart as a versatile and innovative brand, appealing to a broader audience.
  3. Collaboration Opportunities: Large IP portfolios provide opportunities for partnerships with other brands, artists, or franchises, further boosting brand visibility and market penetration.
  4. Resilience Against Market Trends: Managing a variety of IP allows Pop Mart to adapt to changing trends by focusing on characters that resonate most with consumers at any given time.
  5. Enhanced Licensing Potential: A robust IP portfolio creates opportunities for licensing deals, enabling Pop Mart to monetize its assets in new markets and product categories.

Cons

  1. Increased Costs: Developing, registering, and maintaining trademarks, copyrights, and other IP protections for a large portfolio can be expensive and resource-intensive.
  2. IP Dependence: Pop Mart’s strategy has been to control the source of IP, and they’ve signed exclusive contracts with more than 30 toy designers.33 However, there are toy designers that do not have exclusive contracts with Pop Mart. This can be a hindrance to the brand long term as they will be forced to compete for these contracts.  Further, the risk of over-reliance on the popularity of a few key characters such as Molly could pose an issue over time.  If consumer interest in flagship character declines or market trends shift, the company could face reduced revenue and brand relevance, making it vulnerable to fluctuations in demand.
  3. Risk of Overextension: Diversifying too much could dilute the company’s focus and resources, potentially leading to weaker market performance for certain characters.
  4. Legal Challenges: Managing a large portfolio across different jurisdictions increases the risk of trademark disputes or copyright infringement claims, requiring constant vigilance.
  5. Market Saturation: An overly diverse portfolio could lead to internal competition among the IPs, confusing consumers or reducing the perceived exclusivity of the brand

Copymarks in the Collectibles Market: How Pop Mart Outperforms Competitors in Brand Protection and Strategy

Although the term copymark is not formally recognized in intellectual property law, it has emerged as a valuable concept to describe works in the collectibles market that blend copyright and trademark functions. Copymark, a term coined by Professor Stacey Lantagne, refers to a copyright functioning as a trademark.34 This innovative concept allows copyright holders to enhance their rights by taking advantage of trademark law.35 An Example of this is Mickey Mouse, a fictional character, who was first protected by copyright as a creative expression in film. Over time Mickey Mouse has become a source identifier for Disney and he was later trademarked. The benefit of this is that when a trademark is attached to a copyrighted work with a broad audience base, the copyrighted work amplifies the trademark and vice-versa until a brand or mark becomes viral.36

Pop Mart has redefined the concept of copymarks with iconic characters like Labubu leading the charge. Originally a storybook character brought to life by artist Kasing Lung,37 Labubu transitioned into a designer toy under Pop Mart’s umbrella, showcasing the company’s ability to transform literary and artistic creations into global phenomena. Lung owns the copyright to Labubu, and entered into an exclusive license with Pop Mart in 2019,38 granting the company rights to produce and distribute Labubu-themed merchandise. As Labubu’s “IP manager,”39 Pop Mart has facilitated significant financial success for both the artist and the company. With Labubu‘s growing popularity, Pop Mart has recently filed for a trademark, which is currently pending.40

Pop Mart sets itself apart from competitors like Sonny Angel and Funko by strategically trademarking its characters and securing their names, designs, and features to prevent unauthorized use. This approach ensures creative integrity and positions Pop Mart as a wave-maker in leveraging copymarks to enhance brand identity, consumer trust, and global market dominance.

Conclusion

Pop Mart’s success with the blind box model demonstrates the value of combining creativity with strategic IP management. By creating unique characters, securing trademarks, and forming impactful collaborations, the brand has captivated consumers worldwide. These strategies position Pop Mart as a leader in the collectibles space and provide a roadmap for other brands looking to achieve similar success.

Practical Tips

A few important takeaways from Pop Mart’s product development and IP protection strategy include:

  • Use distinctive designs to foster emotional engagement and loyalty.
  • Invest in proprietary IP for long-term brand identity and growth.
  • Collaborate strategically with established brands to expand market appeal.

Footnotes

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