LABUBU is set to make an appearance at the World Cup! Wang Ning reflects on the "F1-style" sprint during the performance review: there’s some luck involved in 2025, and next year we need to proactively "pull into the pit stop for a tire change" | Big Fish Finance

Ask AI · Why did Wang Ning attribute the 2025 growth to luck?

On the afternoon of March 25, Pop Mart (09992.HK) held a 2025 annual results briefing. During the briefing, the company’s share price in the secondary market saw a substantial sell-off, with the decline once exceeding 20%. Faced with this contrast, Wang Ning, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, when responding to questions from institutional investors, described the company’s 2025 performance as a new racer being pulled onto an “F1 track” traveling at an extremely high speed.

Wang Ning admitted that 2025 was the fastest growth year in the company’s history; in terms of revenue, profit, and the size of its store network, its influence reached an unprecedented level. However, he believes this “breakneck acceleration” is not entirely linear. It includes efforts to lay groundwork for globalization earlier, and also contains a certain “luck” factor. At such ultra-high speeds, shortcomings in organizational management, the coordination of the front and mid/back offices, and issues such as information being disconnected across regions are inevitably exposed.

Based on this “going too fast” reflection, Wang Ning’s keyword for 2026 is “pit stop moments.” He said that all companies need to go through cycles. After the company’s explosive growth in 2025, it needs to “add fuel, change tires” in 2026 like an F1 car entering the pit lane. Through proactive rest and building up strength, it will repair the internal rifts caused by rapid expansion, and bring the business back onto a healthier track of “linear growth.”

Regarding market concerns about overreliance on a single IP, Wang Ning expressed strong confidence in the Labubu family (Labubu), even likening it to a “gold mine.” He believes Labubu has become a world-class IP, but that its commercial excavation has only just begun, and it is evolving from a trend into a lifestyle for more people. To sustain the heat, management disclosed multiple core plans: the company has officially announced a partnership with the FIFA World Cup. Related products are scheduled to make their debut in June at the FIFA World Cup venues in the US, Canada, and Mexico; products defined internally as truly “Series 4.0” will also be launched in the second half of this year.

Beyond the product dimension, deeper content development is seen as a key way to counter the risk of IP aging. Wang Ning revealed that Labubu’s film project has entered the script stage, and multiple picture books are also being prepared for publication. At the same time, he emphasized that “Pop Mart isn’t only about Labubu.” Even if the contribution from this IP is excluded in 2025, the company’s core IPs such as HIRONO (Xiao Ye), Star People, and Dimoo have still delivered growth beyond expectations. There were 17 artist IPs with revenue exceeding 100 million last year.

For the outlook on new businesses, Wang Ning confirmed at the meeting that the expansion of City Playground Phase 1.5 is on the agenda. It will deepen fans’ emotional connections through immersive experiences. Although at present, new businesses such as theme parks and accessories account for only 2.4% of revenue, Wang Ning believes these deployments are indispensable long-term assets in the IP commercialization system, not simply chasing short-term deal volume. The signals released throughout the results briefing show that management has recognized the structural pressures behind high growth. The proactive “pit stop” in 2026 is Pop Mart’s strategic reappraisal after attempting to pivot to long-termism following the “unexpected craze” moment.

Reporter: Du Lin Editor: Cao Mengjia Proofreader: Liu Tian