China's blind box craze is making its way to other parts of the world, as some of the the toys landed in Europe just a few weeks ago, with hundreds of excited fans young and old queuing up to get their hands on their favorite character.
Many say there's nothing quite like the thrill of being in a toy store and getting up close and personal with your favorite character.
"I like this one the most because this is the letter of my mom's name," said a young shopper of a collection of colorful bear toys.
"I like this one the most. I am wearing a blue shirt today, I like blue, and this bear is blue and it has white stripes," said another.
Carefully crafted and beautifully designed figurines have made these toys a must have. The element of surprise with every blind box - a type of packaging that keeps its contents hidden - has made it more popular.
The home-grown concept is now being shipped to several countries, but it's not just the toys being exported, but Chinese culture too.
"So when we launch products like these, people are often genuinely surprised, because with our 'Pa Pa Guocui Journey to the West' series, we've truly integrated elements of traditional Chinese culture. For example, the face-changing opera masks from Sichuan, the ancient zither-playing figures from classical Chinese history, and other elements of traditional culture - we've carefully woven them into the design. And as you can see here, there's also Kungfu tea. It's all very charming and delightful," said Hugo Chen, business director of Toycity Culture Technology.
Demand for the likes of Mr Pa, Laura and Labubu remain high in China and have become quite the sensation in other countries too.
"In terms of global expansion, our overseas efforts only really started last year. In the second half of last year - within six months - we achieved sales of over 60 million yuan. Southeast Asia accounted for about 50 to 60 percent of that, which is relatively high. The next major markets would be Australia and Europe," said Chen.
According to sales data, young adults known as Gen Z's are the biggest buyers of the blind box toys.
As Walt Disney famously said, "who says you have to grow up."
China’s blind box toys captivate global fans, transforming collectible trends
The Global Health Forum 2026 Haikou Conference was held in Haikou City of south China's Hainan Province on Wednesday, focusing on global health governance and international cooperation.
Hosted by the Boao Forum for Asia, the event gathered participants from across the globe to explore ways to enhance international collaboration in tackling shared health challenges.
"There is still a long way to go in advancing the global health cause. We urgently need to build greater consensus, and strengthen solidarity and cooperation, so that health can serve as a fundamental foundation for ensuring sustainable and high-quality development," said Leung Chun-ying, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference while addressing the conference.
The conference covered a wide range of health-related topics from healthy aging to health industry cooperation. Artificial intelligence (AI) was one of the key focuses, as the technology continues to rapidly reshape the healthcare sector.
"I think some of the ways that are the most exciting are the ones we don't see. They are not helping the patient directly. They are not helping the doctor directly, but they are making the systems more efficient," said Alain Labrique, director of the Department for Data, Digital Health, Analytics and AI at the World Health Organization.
While some remain concerned that AI hallucinations could pose risks when the technology is used in healthcare, guests at the event said such risks can be mitigated through proper regulation and appropriate human oversight.
"If I use a calculator, if I give two plus two and if I had five, that is the man behind the machine. So, the man behind the machine must be very careful and technologically very high and efficient," said Sardar Md. Sakhawat Husain, Bangladesh's Minister of Health and Family Welfare. "It's critical that regulators and regulatory systems are in place to make sure that people have access to the right tools for what they need. And to make sure that companies and systems are accountable for when mistakes happen," Labrique said.
Participants also noted that global health governance needs to keep pace, bringing countries together to respond to both new opportunities and emerging challenges.
Global Health Forum held in south China's Hainan to focus on international health cooperation
