Pop Mart plans to take action against unauthorised use of Labubu's likeness, says no official licensed partners in Singapore

This doll has teeth, as does their distributor - and some companies may be about to find out.

Pop Mart has announced its plans to take action against unauthorised use of Labubu's likeness in promotions done by other brands in Singapore, according to a post on its official Facebook account on Friday (Nov 22).

The company manages the intellectual property (IP) for Labubu and The Monsters, a story series created by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung.

In 2019, blind-box brand Pop Mart entered an exclusive licence agreement with Lung, covering other characters aside from Labubu including Zimomo, Tycoco, Spooky and Pato.

"We have recently discovered instances of unauthorised use of Pop Mart's intellectual property (IP) by certain brands, including Recoil and PlayMade," the Facebook post said. 

"The operators of these brands are promoting their products using Pop Mart's IP images both online and offline, and/or offering Labubu figurines as promotional items without our authorisation."

Pop Mart cannot guarantee the authenticity or quality of the products that are being distributed by other brands, the company added.

A search online shows Recoil has been selling Labubu-themed shirts priced at about $40 to $46, while PlayMade previously offered the chance for Labubu mystery boxes with purchases of at least $10 at its outlets. The posts citing this promotion are no longer available.

"Currently, Pop Mart does not have any official licensed partners in Singapore," the company stated, adding that any use of brand imagery or IP likeness for promotions or appearances in this region is unauthorised.

"We are actively pursuing legal action to protect our brand, artists' works and our fans from these infringements."

The company also advises members of the public to report to its customer service channels should they find any unauthorised used of its brand or suspicious websites.

Speaking with The Straits Times (ST), Pop Mart International’s head of strategic partnership Kevin Zhang said the company is aware of food vendors selling products made in the likeness of Labubu in Singapore.

Zhang, 46, said: "If we do not take action, we are hurting our future brand partners. For example, if a restaurant chain is willing to pay a licensing fee to use the characters, such illegal and unauthorised use of the IP rights will hurt the brands that want to work with Pop Mart in a proper way."

Confectionary chain Ji Xiang, which previously offered Labubu-shaped ang ku kueh, stopped production on Nov 18, according to ST.

Ji Xiang co-owner Kelvin Toh told the publication: "It was more for marketing purposes and publicity, and not for revenue."

While he intends to contact Pop Mart about collaboration and licensing, customers who paid for pre-ordered kueh in the last week will be refunded, he added.

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khooyihang@asiaone.com