Plush toys seem to have become a spiritual sweetener for adults.
Young people who once scrambled for Pop Mart blind boxes are now frantically buying Labubu.
As the trendy toy market shifts from blue to red, and with a growing number of trending categories, plush toys, once primarily targeted at children, have become trendy.
Whether reimagining classic IPs or integrating them with influencer IPs, these products are adding a premium to the plush products themselves and attracting more young consumers.
Why are young people buying into these products? Where can trendy toy brands achieve the breakthrough of "plush + IP"?
With the shift in trendy toys, why are young people buying into them?
So, why are young people buying into these products?
First and foremost, it's emotional healing. In real life, plush toys provide emotional comfort for young people. The three-year pandemic not only dealt a blow to the national economy but also left hidden psychological scars on the Chinese people. Furthermore, with the number of adults living alone in my country approaching 100 million in 2021, the "single era" has arrived. With increasing pressures and changing attitudes towards marriage and love, more and more young people are seeking companionship and comfort, and plush toys perfectly meet this need.
Furthermore, on social media platforms, soft toys have become the perfect "mouthpiece" for young people. IP-branded plush toy emojis, coupled with "crazy literature," have become the perfect channel for young people to express themselves. Through these plush characters, countless strangers have unleashed their creative inspiration and found resonance online.
Adding to this is the product's playability itself. Beyond appealing to young consumers through craftsmanship and materials, plush toys are also drawing on the success of trendy toys, tapping into young people's psychological needs for novelty and stress relief, creating breakthroughs in playability.
Take Pop Mart as an example. Building on its successful experience with trendy toys, Pop Mart launched a plush toy capsule machine priced at 99 yuan. This offering differs from traditional plush toys in both pricing and gameplay. Consumers can unlock plush toys of popular IPs like Labubu, Yoyo, and Yuki from basketball-sized capsules, experiencing a multi-layered experience of surprise.
Another point is that plush toys are breaking free from the constraints of traditional imagery. Beyond the usual anime and animal characters, lipstick, cookies, and vegetables can all be plushed, making plush toys more relevant to everyday life, appealing to young people's yearning for a better life and alleviating negative emotions.
What are the trends in IP-based plush toys? Where are the breakthroughs?
In the post-pandemic era, amidst the general trend of consumption downgrade, plush toys, while not essential for daily life, are becoming increasingly popular. Ultimately, this is due to the advancement of the companionship economy.
"A bit childish for children, just right for adults." The breakthrough for trendy plush toys is no longer limited to low-priced products, but rather to products that cater to the emotional needs of young people. First, it's crucial to satisfy young people's need for a "persona" in virtual social interactions. The "anthropomorphization" of plush toys isn't a new culture; it's the core of this generation's virtual social interactions: persona culture. Placing a virtual persona on an anthropomorphic plush toy with an IP story is a projection from the virtual to the real. This means the IP plush toy's anthropomorphic expressions and realistic feel, as well as the "fidelity" based on the IP setting, are more appealing to consumers.
Second, it's crucial to meet young people's multifaceted emotional needs. Plush toys become comforting spiritual friends, and their soft, cuddly appearance can inspire consumers' protective instincts. This feeling of being needed satisfies their sense of presence, making them more likely to make purchases. Therefore, using emotionally engaging content to convey the value of the brand and IP and forge an emotional connection with consumers is crucial for achieving effective emotional marketing.
It's also crucial to satisfy young people's aesthetic needs. The trendy toy market is experiencing a surge in popularity. The richness of materials and the level of craftsmanship largely influence consumer purchasing decisions. Furthermore, consumers have high expectations for IP-branded plush toys based on their innate affinity for the IP. If these expectations are not met, this can lead to greater resistance compared to traditional plush toys. Conversely, products with high aesthetics and excellent quality control can attract numerous "tap-in" customers, leading to explosive growth.
Finally, it's crucial to meet young people's experiential needs. Simply relying on quality and selling points won't necessarily unlock young people's tightening wallets. Therefore, brands can further enhance young people's demand for IP-branded plush toys by creating a compelling atmosphere. Integrating products with scenarios closely related to young people's daily lives and emphasizing the positive outcomes these scenarios can bring often resonate more deeply with consumers.
In short, anxiety is the underlying theme of the current era. Young people urgently need to escape from their high-pressure environments, while simultaneously becoming immersed in the fragmented and impersonal nature of online social interaction. Therefore, the companionship economy, which can alleviate loneliness, is undoubtedly a hot topic. Among the many subcategories of trendy toys, plush toys, which offer companionship and help people achieve personalized expression, are becoming increasingly popular, and for good reason. How else can plush toys be "played"? We look forward to these trendy toy brands providing a better understanding.
Post time: Oct-11-2025