Case Study

Pop Mart: LEGO or Disney?

7 pages
September 2021
Reference: IMD-7-2303

In June 2020, Pop Mart, a 10-year history Chinese trendy toy company achieved market value of US$15 billion, higher than LEGO or Hasbro. Pop Mart toys are not traditional; they are not for kids but for Generation Z. It’s business model uses innovative ways to sell trendy toys. It combines designer toys and blind boxes to provide the feeling of excitement and surprise, uses hidden models, which creates a sense of scarcity and appeals to consumers’ desire to own, and implements a tiered pricing structure to cater to the multi-level needs of its Generation Z consumers. Pop Mart’s dream is to become a Chinese toy company most like Disney.

Learning Objective
  • Lessons draw from Pop Mart for businesses targeting Gen Z
  • Identifying emotional stimuli and satisfying emotional needs
  • Artists and IP assets are core for competitiveness
  • Approaching consumers in digital ways.
Keywords
Innovation, Retail, Toy, Pricing Strategy, Strategy, Asia, China
Settings
Asia, China
Pop Mart, Consumer Services, Retail
2010-2021
Type
Published Sources
Copyright
© 2021
Available Languages
English
Case clearing houses
IMD case studies are distributed through case clearing houses. In order to browse the collection and purchase copies please visit the links below.

The Case Centre

Cranfield University

Wharley End Beds MK43 0JR, UK
Tel +44 (0)1234 750903
Email [email protected]

Harvard Business School Publishing

60 Harvard Way, Boston MA 02163, USA
Tel (800) 545-7685 Tel (617)-783-7600
Fax (617) 783-7666
Email [email protected]

Asia Pacific Case Center

NUCB Business School

1-3-1 Nishiki Naka
Nagoya Aichi, Japan 460-0003
Tel +81 52 20 38 111
Email [email protected]

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

This case study is part of a series
  • CATL: Global battery supremacy
  • Gojek: Merging with Tokopedia to create a super platform
  • Pop Mart: LEGO or Disney?
  • SEA: A $140 billion hidden Alibaba?
  • Shein: Another Amazon or terminator of Zara?
  • Youhualin: Digitizing the supply chain in China
This case study is part of a series
  • CATL: Global battery supremacy
  • Gojek: Merging with Tokopedia to create a super platform
  • Pop Mart: LEGO or Disney?
  • SEA: A $140 billion hidden Alibaba?
  • Shein: Another Amazon or terminator of Zara?
  • Youhualin: Digitizing the supply chain in China
Discover our latest research
IMD's faculty and research teams publish articles, case studies, books and reports on a wide range of topics
CATL: Global battery supremacy
By Mark J. Greeven Yunfei Feng and Patrick Reinmoeller
Case reference: IMD-7-2302 ©2022
Summary
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL) was founded in 1999 under the name ATL. Initially, it had no technology of its own, and the founder, ...
Reference IMD-7-2302
Copyright ©2022
Copyright owner IMD Copyright
Organization CATL
Industry Automotive, Automobiles;Automotive, Electric Vehicles
Available Languages English
Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Gojek: Merging with Tokopedia to create a super platform
By Mark J. Greeven Patrick Reinmoeller and Yunfei Feng
Case reference: IMD-7-2301 ©2021
Summary
GoJek has often been ranked among the most innovative companies in Asia. GoJek, established in Indonesia in 2010, started out as a call center for ...
Reference IMD-7-2301
Copyright ©2021
Copyright owner IMD Copyright
Organization Gojek
Industry Information Technology, eCommerce;Logistics and Supply Chain, Transportation;Consumer Services;Services
Available Languages English
Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Pop Mart: LEGO or Disney?
By Mark J. Greeven Patrick Reinmoeller and Yunfei Feng
Case reference: IMD-7-2303 ©2021
Summary
In June 2020, Pop Mart, a 10-year history Chinese trendy toy company achieved market value of US$15 billion, higher than LEGO or Hasbro. Pop Mart t...
Reference IMD-7-2303
Copyright ©2021
Copyright owner IMD Copyright
Organization Pop Mart
Industry Consumer Services, Retail
Available Languages English
Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

SEA: A $140 billion hidden Alibaba?
By Mark J. Greeven Patrick Reinmoeller and Yunfei Feng
Case reference: IMD-7-2337 ©2021
Summary
Sea Limited, founded in Singapore in 2009, is a consumer internet company. It started out as Garena, a digital entertainment company (like Tencent)...
Reference IMD-7-2337
Copyright ©2021
Copyright owner IMD Copyright
Organization Sea Limited
Industry Information Technology, Internet;Information Technology, eCommerce;Travel and Leisure, Entertainment
Available Languages English
Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Shein: Another Amazon or terminator of Zara?
By Mark J. Greeven Patrick Reinmoeller and Yunfei Feng
Case reference: IMD-7-2298 ©2021
Summary
As an international B2C fast fashion e-commerce platform established in Nanjing, SheIn's business model seems to be more superior than Zara. It is ...
Reference IMD-7-2298
Copyright ©2021
Copyright owner IMD Copyright
Organization Shein
Industry Consumer Goods, Apparel and Fashion
Available Languages English
Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Youhualin: Digitizing the supply chain in China
By Mark J. Greeven Patrick Reinmoeller Yunfei Feng and Erik Walenza-Slabe
Case reference: IMD-7-2350 ©2022
Summary
Youhualin, a Chinese technology company driven by operations research, artificial intelligence and big data technology, provides intelligent decisi...
Reference IMD-7-2350
Copyright ©2022
Copyright owner IMD Copyright
Organization Youhualin Information Technology (Shanghai)
Industry Information Technology
Available Languages English
Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications