The email subject line was just two words.
"la foo foo?"
No greeting. No other text. Just that. I knew immediately what was happening. This wasn't spam. This was a customer, a new collector, lost in the woods of designer toys, trying to find their way with a broken compass they got from a comedian.
And honestly? I love it.
If you've typed "la foo foo" into Google and landed here, welcome. You're in the right place, even if you feel like you're in the wrong one. You've stumbled into one of the funniest, most organic, and slightly bizarre inside jokes in the entire designer toy world. As the owner of PopNya, where we live and breathe these little monsters, I get to see this confusion play out in real-time. It's my favorite kind of customer question because the story behind it is just so good.
So let's clear it all up. What is la foo foo? And what does it have to do with the adorable, buck-toothed, long-eared creature known as LABUBU?
The Joke That Started It All
The origin of "la foo foo" has absolutely nothing to do with designer toys, Kasing Lung, or Pop Mart. It comes from the mind of comedian Sebastian Maniscalco.
In his 2024 Netflix special, Is It Me?, Sebastian goes on a classic rant about modern parenting and the bewildering world of his kids' interests. He talks about trying to buy a toy for his daughter, a toy she desperately wants. A toy called LABUBU.
He butchers the name. Hilariously.
He describes his confusion to the toy store employee, stumbling over the pronunciation. "La-boo-boo? La-foo-foo?" he asks, his face a perfect mask of parental bewilderment. He mimics trying to explain the toy, "It's a bunny... But it's a monster... It's got these ears..."
The audience roars because it's relatable. It's that universal feeling of being an out-of-touch parent trying to navigate the hyper-specific trends of your children. The joke isn't about LABUBU itself; it's about the absurdity of these strange little status symbols from an outsider's perspective. Clips of this bit exploded on TikTok and Instagram Reels. Suddenly, millions of people who had never heard of a designer toy in their life had heard of "la boo boo, la foo foo."
And it happened at the exact moment LABUBU was turning into a global phenomenon.
The Perfect Storm: A Comedian Meets a Craze
Timing is everything. If Sebastian Maniscalco had made that joke in 2021, it would have landed with a thud. A few hundred hardcore collectors might have chuckled, and that would be it. But he made it in late 2023, just as LABUBU, particularly The Monsters Macaron series, was reaching a fever pitch of viral popularity.
I can't overstate how wild the Macaron craze was. I've been selling designer toys for years, and I've seen hype cycles, but this was different. We were getting dozens of emails a day. Our Instagram DMs were flooded. People who had never bought a blind box before were suddenly desperate to find the "Soymilk" or "Lychee" LABUBU. They were a fashion accessory, seen dangling from the bags of celebrities and influencers.
So you have two massive waves cresting at the same time: 1. A viral toy craze creating millions of new, curious fans. 2. A viral comedy bit making fun of that exact toy's name.
The waves didn't just crest; they crashed into each other.
The result was pure, chaotic, beautiful confusion. Newcomers, armed only with a vague memory of a TikTok sound, started their search. They weren't searching for "LABUBU." They were searching for what they heard. "La boo boo." "Lala fufu." And, of course, "la foo foo."
As a seller, I saw it happen in our store's analytics. In the span of a month, "la foo foo" went from a zero-search term to one of the top 20 keywords driving people to our site. It was bizarre. It was like owning a bakery and suddenly having people come in asking for "fluffy bread circles" because of a popular meme about donuts.
Real Talk: My Honest Opinion on "La Foo Foo"
Okay, let me be straight with you. When I first saw collectors getting annoyed by the "la foo foo" thing in online forums, I kind of got it. When you're deep into a hobby, you care about the details. The artist's name is Kasing Lung. The character is LABUBU. It's part of The Monsters family. Using the right name feels like a sign of respect for the art and the community.
But I got over that feeling fast. Very fast.
Honestly, I think the "la foo foo" phenomenon is one of the best things to happen to the LABUBU community. It's a filter, a welcome mat, and an inside joke all rolled into one.
When someone emails us at PopNya asking for "la foo foo," it tells me one thing: this person is new. They're curious. They're not a seasoned collector trying to flip a rare piece for a 300% markup. They're someone who saw something they thought was cute and is just starting their journey. And those are my favorite people to talk to.
It's a conversation starter. Instead of a sterile transaction, it becomes a moment of connection. We get to be the ones to say, "Haha, you saw the Sebastian Maniscalco bit, right? It's hilarious. The toy you're looking for is called LABUBU, and we can totally help you with that." It breaks the ice. It makes the hobby feel less intimidating and more like a fun club you've just discovered.
It's also, frankly, incredible organic marketing. Pop Mart couldn't have paid for a better, more authentic advertisement if they tried. It got the name, or a version of it, into the mouths of millions of people who would otherwise never have encountered a designer toy. It's the kind of weird, unpredictable cultural crossover that makes collecting so interesting. It reminds me of other strange things that become part of a collection's history, like the time I discovered what I thought was a fake LABUBU head was actually a bizarre, real piece of merchandise. The weirdness is part of the fun, a part of the story you tell later. This is just the latest chapter in the weird and wonderful world of collecting.
A Seller's Field Report: Life on the La Foo Foo Front Lines
At PopNya, we've fully embraced it. It's become an internal shorthand. When a new shipment of The Monsters series arrives, someone on the team will inevitably say, "The la foo foos are here!"
We've had some truly memorable customer interactions.
One person sent us a shaky, zoomed-in screenshot from the Netflix special, with a red circle around Sebastian's face, and the message: "I need this. The bunny monster thing he is talking about."
Another customer, after we explained the name was LABUBU, replied, "Oh, thank god. I've been calling it the 'scared rabbit' to my friends and they think I'm insane."
My absolute favorite was a dad who was clearly on a mission for his daughter. His email was a frantic play-by-play of his search. He wrote, "I went to Target, I went to Walmart. I asked for la foo foo and they looked at me like I had three heads. My daughter's birthday is Saturday. PLEASE tell me you are not a fake website." We got him a full case of the Macaron series, and he later sent a picture of his daughter's ridiculously happy face. That's what this is all about.
One detail that other sellers might not notice, but we see in our data, is the follow-on behavior. People who search for "la foo foo" and land on our site often spend more time browsing than people who search for the correct term. My theory? The "la foo foo" searchers are on a journey of discovery. They're not just looking to buy a specific item and leave. They're figuring it all out. They click on DIMOO, on SKULLPANDA, on Hirono. They're falling down the rabbit hole, and the "la foo foo" joke was their accidental entry point.
So, You're Here for La Foo Foo?
If you're one of the many who found us by searching for that wonderfully silly name, you've come to the right place. The creature you're looking for is LABUBU, one of the main characters from "The Monsters" series, created by the brilliant Hong Kong-based artist Kasing Lung.
LABUBU is not a bunny, though I get the confusion. He's a mischievous little monster with long ears, a set of tiny wings, and a signature snaggle-toothed grin. He's curious, a little naughty, and endlessly charming. He comes in countless variations and series, from dressing up as zodiac signs to being reimagined as delicious macaron flavors.
The best way to get to know him is to just dive in. You can explore the whole world of The Monsters and browse our LABUBU collection to see all the different series and designs available. You'll find everything from the viral Macaron series to the latest Fall in Wild and "How Are You Feeling Today?" collections.
Don't ever feel silly for calling it "la foo foo." You're now part of a very specific, very funny club. You're in on the joke. In a community that can sometimes feel exclusive or full of jargon, this goofy misnomer has become an accidental password for newcomers. It's a sign that you're curious, and in the world of collecting, curiosity is the only real price of admission.
We'll probably be getting "la foo foo" emails for years to come, long after the Netflix special is forgotten. And every time one lands in our inbox, I know I'll smile. It's a reminder that this hobby isn't just about vinyl and paint and resale values. It's about joy, discovery, and the hilarious, unpredictable ways people find their way to it.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pack an order for a "fluffy eared goblin." I know exactly what they mean.
*Disclosure: PopNya may earn a commission if you purchase through links on this page.
