BANGKOK: A video clip of Labubu, the famous devil doll with pointed ears and serrated teeth, travelling across Bangkok has been published on Chinese social media platforms.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), in collaboration with Chinese toy company Pop Mart and Chinese online travel company Qunar, brought the doll to Thailand on an four-day trip from July 1.
The clip records Labubu’s adventures across the capital and stops at several attractions such as Wat Phra Kaew (Emerald Buddha Temple) Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen, the King Power Mahanakhon Skywalk and the Talat Noi neighbourhood.
The devil doll is recorded observing the Chao Phraya River, cooking Thai food, taking part in Muay Thai class and even playing with a stray cat.
“The video clip has been published on several Chinese social media platforms, like WeChat [Weixin], Weibo and Little Red Book [Xiaohongshu],” TAT governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool said on Wednesday (July 24).
She believes Labubu’s trip will result in Qunar selling at least 20,000 packages to people hoping to follow in the doll’s footsteps in July and August this year. The clip will also possibly inspire at least 800,000 tourists to visit Thailand during the Chinese Golden Week from Oct 1 to 7, she said.
“This Labubu campaign can be considered a success because it has put a positive spin to travelling in Thailand and stimulated the sale of tour packages during the [Chinese] summer holidays,” she said.
Labubu became one of the trendiest art toys in Thailand after K-pop princess Lalisa “Lisa” Manobal posted pictures of her collection on Instagram.
Some versions of Labubu dolls are now out of stock or being sold online as expensive collectors’ items. There have also been many cases of online buyers being tricked into paying a lot for fake versions or getting nothing at all. - The Nation/ANN
