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Motley Fool Hidden Gems Investing

The Labubu Economy

Motley Fool Hidden Gems Investing

The Motley Fool

Business, Investing

4.33.1K Ratings

🗓️ 16 September 2025

⏱️ 23 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Blind boxes, dopamine hits, and “adorably ugly” IP - today Emily Flippen alongside analysts Sanmeet Deo and Asit Sharma unpack the collectibles economy and the anatomy of a craze. We ask who actually wins when crazes hit the market, evaluate the value of owning or licensing intellectual property, and wrap up with a lightning round of stocks we’d use to play a craze. Companies discussed: PMRTY, HAS, FNKO, BILI, EBAY, META, COST Host: Emily Flippen, Sanmeet Deo, Asit SharmaProducer: Anand ChokkaveluEngineer: Bart Shannon Disclosure: Advertisements are sponsored content and provided for informational purposes only. The Motley Fool and its affiliates (collectively, “TMF”) do not endorse, recommend, or verify the accuracy or completeness of the statements made within advertisements. TMF is not involved in the offer, sale, or solicitation of any securities advertised herein and makes no representations regarding the suitability, or risks associated with any investment opportunity presented. Investors should conduct their own due diligence and consult with legal, tax, and financial advisors before making any investment decisions. TMF assumes no responsibility for any losses or damages arising from this advertisement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices"  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Today on Motley Fool Money, we're breaking down the collectibles economy and how businesses

0:09.3

turn plastic into profit.

0:19.9

I'm Emily Flippen, and today I'm joined by analysts Sanmideo and Asset Sharma to discuss the latest craze in the industry of collectibles.

0:27.8

The boo-boos.

0:29.0

Along the way, we'll dig into how the hype cycle has helped perpetuate these fats and explore the successes and failures of previous collectible manias to help evaluate how investors should

0:38.4

best play it. But to start, let's clarify the anatomy of what a craze is. Sadmeet, you've lived

0:44.4

through more than one craze. And regardless of what industry it is, you said there's always some

0:48.8

similarities. Now, before we get into exactly what a Luboo is, because I'm still not sure I know,

0:54.6

what actually is a craze? And how is that different than just like a sustainable trend?

0:58.9

So, craze is really an intense collective impulse that burns incredibly bright, often for

1:03.5

a very short time. Think of it like a flashfire in consumer marketplace spreading virally

1:08.2

before quickly burning itself out. You know, we've seen it time and time again with Beanie Babies in the 90s, fidget spinners a few years ago.

1:14.9

And the driving force of this is really a powerful cocktail of human psychology.

1:18.4

You have FOMO, our desire for novelty, and the simple need to feel like part of the group.

1:23.6

You know, today's crazy to become more sophisticated as companies pull on specific levers to build the hype, such as gamification of buying,

1:30.7

engineers scarcity, and exclusivity, community, and character and aesthetic design.

1:36.0

I think about what defines a craze personally versus something that may be more sustainable.

1:40.9

It's like that desire that you just mentioned, that almost capitalizes on our human nature to not want to miss out on things, right? There's always these little,

1:48.9

I don't know if to call it gamifications, but elements that are almost taking advantage of human

1:53.3

psychology, where if you feel like you're not participating, you are actively falling behind.

1:57.7

Absolutely. You know, they're not just a transaction anymore. It's like you said said, it's a game. It's, it's, um, they're creating a dopamine hit from like a reveal like you would in a blind box where you're like, what am I going to get? And you open it up. You're like, wow, this is what I wanted or wow, this isn't what I wanted. You know, the companies release limited editions and collaborations, creating like a sense

2:18.5

of urgency to buy. And then you have social media, which is like rocket fuel, which causes

...

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