Pop Mart mulls entry into Philippines food market

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino consumers could be unboxing not just toy blind boxes, but even Labubu-themed pastries in the future as Pop Mart International Group is looking to enter the Philippine food market.

Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) chairman Sam Christopher Lim told reporters that Pop Mart, which has pop-up stores in the country, is interested in expanding in the local food scene.

PFA was one of the organizations that Pop Mart officials met during a recent visit to the Philippines to explore expansion opportunities.

Lim said Pop Mart’s theme park in China features a shop selling Labubu-themed cakes, which could be replicated outside the theme park.

“They’re looking at the Philippines as possibly one of the first markets that they want to launch that in,” he said, noting that Pop Mart sees the country as a big consumer market.

As Pop Mart is looking for partners for the food business, he said PFA arranged a meeting with some food firms in the country to provide insights.

“Nothing (is) confirmed (yet). I think they were just here to really explore a bit more about the market,” he said.

Located in Beijing, China, Pop Mart’s theme park called Pop Mart City Park covers about 40,000 square meters and features characters including Labubu, Molly and Dimoo.

At present, Pop Mart has pop-up stores at SM Mall of Asia in Pasay and SM Makati.