The first time a customer emailed us asking for a "baba labubu," I was genuinely confused.
"Do you mean the baby one from the Monsters Mischief Diary series?" I replied.
"No," they wrote back, "the sitting one. The sad one. The baba labubu."
And that's when I knew. The hype had breached containment. It was no longer just a figure; it was a phenomenon. This wasn't about a blind box pull. This was about a specific, standalone release that had somehow captured the collective imagination of the internet and sent the designer toy market into a small, fluffy frenzy.
As someone who sells these little monsters for a living at PopNya, I've had a front-row seat to the madness. I've seen the desperate DMs, the absurd aftermarket prices, and the pure joy on people's faces when they finally get one. So let's talk about it. Let's get into what the have a seat baba actually is, why it blew up, and whether you should even consider buying one.
*So, What Exactly Is* This Thing?First things first: The baba labubu is part of a series from Pop Mart called "The Monsters Have a Seat." Unlike most LABUBU releases, this is not a blind box series. It was a collection of open-box, individual figures featuring Kasing Lung's characters, Zimomo, Tycoco, Pato, Spooky, and of course, Labubu, all in a seated position.
But Baba is different.
It's not a standard vinyl figure. It's not a standard plush toy. It's a hybrid, and that's a huge part of its charm. The head is the classic, hard vinyl we all know, with those signature pointy ears and mischievous-yet-innocent eyes. But the body is something else entirely. It's a soft, almost velvety plush that's weighted with pellets or beans inside.
This is a detail that product pages on Amazon or eBay never seem to get right. When you pick up the labubu doll baba*, it has this surprising, satisfying heft. It doesn't just sit; it slumps*. The weighted bottom allows it to perch perfectly on the edge of a monitor, a bookshelf, or the dashboard of your car, which is precisely where it started going viral. It's bigger than a blind box figure but small enough to be a little companion. An emotional support monster, if you will.
The design itself is peak Labubu. The simple gray color scheme, the slightly downturned mouth, the pose that looks either contemplative or just plain tired. It's relatable. It's the perfect mascot for our perpetually exhausted, chronically online generation.
The Hype-splosion: How a Sitting Monster Broke the Internet
I've been in the designer toy game for a while, and I've seen figures get popular. The Exciting Macaron Labubu series had its moment, and certain secrets will always command high prices. But the Baba phenomenon was different. This felt less like collector hype and more like a mainstream cultural moment.
It started on platforms like TikTok and its Chinese counterpart, Douyin. Suddenly, my feed was flooded with videos of this little gray monster. People were unboxing their ba ba labubu, taking it to cafes, putting tiny hats on it, and setting it up on their desks next to their keyboards. The sitting pose made it incredibly photogenic and meme-able. It wasn't just a collectible; it was a character, a tiny friend to share your day with.
Pop Mart, for all their marketing genius, seemed to be caught off guard. The initial release of the labubu baba have a seat figure was not massive. It sold out. Fast. And when the mainstream internet wants something that collectors also want, you get a perfect storm of scarcity and demand. The FOMO was instantaneous and brutal. This wasn't just another figure in the vast LABUBU universe; it became the figure to own.
Real Talk: The Price Problem and Market Madness
Let's get down to the part that really matters: the money.
When the baba pop mart figure first released, its retail price was around $28-$35 USD, depending on the region. A perfectly reasonable price for a unique, medium-sized designer piece.
Then the hype hit.
Within weeks, I was watching prices on StockX and eBay climb to $100. Then $120. At the absolute peak of the frenzy in late 2023, I personally saw a baba labubu sell for over $180. That is, frankly, insane. For that price, you could buy an entire case of a new blind box series and have money left over.
As a seller, it's a strange position to be in. On one hand, high demand is good for business. On the other, I hate seeing new collectors get fleeced. So let me be crystal clear: Do not pay over $100 for a Baba Labubu. The market is slowly correcting. Pop Mart is not a company that leaves money on the table; restocks have happened and will likely continue to happen. The initial scarcity was a product of unexpected demand, not a planned limited edition run.
Here's a real collector's tip: If you're looking at a Baba on a secondary market site, ask the seller for a picture of the bottom of the box. The original first-run boxes have a specific production date. While later restocks are identical in quality (I've inspected them myself), some hardcore collectors value the "first edition." For 99% of buyers, this makes zero difference, but it's a good way to tell if a seller is being transparent. The quality of the plush and the vinyl head has been consistent across batches, which is a credit to Pop Mart's production.
Baba vs. The Rest of the "Have a Seat" Crew
One of the most interesting parts of this whole situation is how Baba completely overshadowed the other figures in its own series. Zimomo, Tycoco, Pato, and Spooky were all released in the same "Have a Seat" format. They are all, by any measure, fantastic designs.
Yet, you can still find most of them for close to their original retail price. Why?
I've thought about this a lot while packing orders. I think it comes down to a few things. First, Baba's design is the most quintessentially "Labubu." It's the character in its purest form. Second, the neutral gray color makes it fit anywhere, appealing to a broader audience beyond toy collectors, people into interior design, desk setups, and minimalist aesthetics. The other figures, while amazing, are more niche in their appeal.
This isn't to knock the other characters. The "Have a Seat" Zimomo is one of my personal favorites. But the market has spoken. Baba is the star. This is a pattern we see sometimes, where one character from a set becomes the chase, even if it's not officially a "secret." We saw a bit of this with the V2 "Have a Seat" series, though not to the same extreme. If you want to dive deeper into that, our seller's guide to the V2 hype breaks it down. But Baba remains the undisputed king of the sitting monsters.
The Buyer's Playbook: How to Get a Baba Without Regrets
Okay, so you've read all this and you still want one. I get it. It's an awesome piece. Here's how to approach it smartly.
1. How to Spot a Fake
With high prices come the fakes. They are getting better, but there are still tells. * The Texture: This is the biggest giveaway. Authentic Babas have a dense, matte, almost velvety plush body. Fakes often use a cheaper, shinier material that feels thin and slippery. * The Weight: Fakes are almost always lighter. They often skip the weighted pellets in the bottom, so they won't have that satisfying "slump." * The Head: Check the paint job on the vinyl head. Pop Mart's quality control is very high. The lines should be crisp, especially around the eyes and teeth. Fakes often have fuzzy paint lines or a slightly "off" face sculpt. * The Tag: The sewn-in tag on an authentic baba la bubu is high quality, with clean printing and stitching. Fakes will have sloppy fonts, crooked text, or flimsy-feeling tags.
2. Where to Look (Safely)
* Official Channels: Keep an eye on Pop Mart's official website and physical stores. They do restock. Use an app or service to get notifications. This is your best chance at getting one for retail. * Reputable Retailers: This is where we come in. Shops like ours (PopNya) work directly with distributors to secure authentic stock. We try our best to keep our LABUBU collection updated, but high-demand items like Baba fly off the shelves. Signing up for our newsletter is the best way to hear about restocks first. * Secondary Markets (with caution): eBay, Mercari, and StockX are options, but you're entering the wild west. Scrutinize seller reviews. Ask for detailed photos. And never, ever pay a price that makes your stomach churn. * Collector Communities: Facebook groups and Discord servers can be great for finding direct sales or trades. You'll often find more reasonable prices here from fellow fans, but always use secure payment methods like PayPal Goods & Services.
3. What's a "Fair" Price Today?
The market is always in flux, but as of mid-2024, the dust has settled a bit. Paying $60-$80 for a Baba Labubu is the current reality on the secondary market. If you can find one under $60, consider it a solid win. If someone is asking for over $100, they're either banking on you not knowing any better or they're selling a "first run" version to a hardcore collector. For most of us, it's not worth the premium.
My best advice? Be patient. The hype will continue to fade, and prices will stabilize further.
Our Take: The PopNya Verdict
So, after all that, is the Baba Labubu worth the hype and the money?
Yes… and no.
Yes, because it's a genuinely fantastic piece of design. The vinyl-plush hybrid format is a triumph. The weighted body gives it a tactile quality that most designer toys lack. It's one of the most charming and perfectly executed standalone figures Kasing Lung and Pop Mart have ever produced. It just feels good to have it sitting on your desk.
No, because it is absolutely not worth the insane aftermarket prices it once commanded. It's not an "investment piece." It's not a super-limited grail. Its value is propped up by social media trends, not true rarity. If you're a new collector with $150 to spend, you would get infinitely more joy and value from buying a full blind box case of a series you love. For that money, you could explore a whole world of designs, not just one sitting monster. For example, some of the most sought-after pink Labubu figures have a more stable long-term value.
My final verdict is this: The Baba Labubu is a wonderful toy. If you love the design and can find it for a price that feels fair to you, buy it. You won't regret it. But buy it because you want a sad little monster friend to keep you company, not because you think it's your ticket to early retirement.
And please, for the love of all that is vinyl, don't let FOMO drain your bank account. There will always be another cool toy around the corner.
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