People look at collectable designer art toy Labubu at a Pop Mart pop-up store in Siam Center shopping mall in Bangkok on May 6, 2025. - AFP
JINAN: The surge in cross-border resales of Pop Mart toys, with some rare editions fetching jaw-dropping prices, has blurred the line between proxy shopping and smuggling, as several Chinese customs authorities have reported undeclared toys being intercepted in quantities exceeding the allowed amount.
In the past three months, Chinese customs authorities have reported multiple cases of intercepting undeclared Pop Mart toys, including popular Labubu and Molly figurines, carried by passengers who are seeking to profit from resales.
