Fans of the popular collectible toy retailer Pop Mart — maker of Labubus and other hot collectible toys — no longer will have to drive out of Modesto to get the latest figurines and plushies, or worry if they are authentic.
On Friday, Oct. 10, Vintage Faire Mall installed a Robo Shop vending machine that dispenses Pop Mart collectibles. The Robo Shop is the first official Pop Mart retailer in the area and offers many of its most popular characters like Skullpanda, Molly, Dimoo, Crybaby, and The Monsters, known more commonly as Labubu.
Pop Mart sells many different toys as figurines, plush pendants, bags and other accessories, and most of them are sold as blind boxes. A blind box is a sealed package with the inside toy remaining a mystery until it is opened. This fuels the collecting craze as shoppers buy multiple blind boxes in hopes of getting the one they really want or completing an entire set of the series.
Established in 2010 in Beijing, Pop Mart has dominated the blind box collectible toy market, with over $1.2 billion in revenue worldwide. The nine-toothed, pointy-eared Labubus, described as mischievous monsters, have been one of the main reasons for its global appeal, with fans snatching up the items online and in stores as soon as they’re released.
Pop Mart has 500 stores and 2,300 Robo Shops around the world. The closest store to Modesto is in Pleasanton at the Stoneridge Shopping Center, and a store just opened last month at Arden Fair Mall in Sacramento…