A woman named Stella bought her first Jellycat brand soft toy in the midst of a time of job loss during the global health crisis. Inspired by a friend's enthusiasm for the UK-created toys, her curiosity was fully captured when she saw a unique gingerbread cottage plushie circulating on a popular Chinese social media platform.
While The Christmas holiday is not widely celebrated in China, serving more as a commercial event than a cultural tradition, the imagery of gingerbread houses appealed with her. "The festival doesn't mean much to me... But I have always loved the sight of those sweet houses," she remarks. This prompted her to eventually request an old friend in Guangzhou to buy the item on her behalf.
That purchase was made in 2021, coinciding with the brand was about to achieve significant popularity in China and internationally. "Everyone felt uneasy, and nobody knew what exactly was going to happen," recalls Stella, who developed a routine of petting and hugging her plushies to cope throughout that stressful time. Living in Beijing, a city with among the most stringent restrictions in the world, she spent a great deal of time at home.
Now aged 32 and working as a tourism sector in the tourism industry, Stella continues to grow her collection. It has grown to around 120 toys, representing an investment of about 36,000 yuan. "At my age, you have numerous matters you can't share with other people... and the problems we face are a lot more complicated than in the past," she notes with a sigh. "These soft toys help me managing my emotions."
Originally marketed for children, these soft creatures have evolved into a global sensation, especially within China where an somewhat disillusioned youth demographic is turning to them for comfort and solace.
Stella's gingerbread cottage plushie belongs to the "Amuseable" line, a range of characters featuring small faces inspired by commonplace inanimate objects, ranging from toilet rolls to boiled eggs. These plushies have become the "standout success" that "attract a broad Gen-Z and millennial audience" around the world, as noted by industry analysts.
The surge in popularity "may have something to do with a desire to feel a sense of connection," suggest experts. While it's difficult to say for sure whether the introduction of the now-iconic Amuseable line back in 2018 was an intentional strategy to engage the adult market, toy manufacturers increasingly must cultivate new markets amid declining fertility rates across numerous countries.
The brand entered the Chinese market as early as 2015. By laying significant "groundwork", the toy maker was well-positioned to tap into "the tone of the pandemic"—when people sought comfort during widespread anxiety—and built on this success there, as explained by industry experts.
Its popularity was further propelled by creative temporary events. These in-store activations sometimes offered a menu of exclusive "culinary" themed items. Many fans would film themselves interacting and post the clips online.
Adaptation to local tastes proved to be an essential approach. As an example, fans were able to buy stuffed toy versions of traditional UK dishes like fish, chips and mushy peas during a pop-up in London. Meanwhile, products including teapot and teacup plushies were featured at special stores in Chinese metropolises last year.
In 2024, the British firm's sales reportedly rose by two-thirds to reach a substantial figure. During that timeframe, sales of an estimated $117 million worth of its products in China via leading online marketplaces, according to market intelligence data.
This expansion parallels a broader boom within China's collectible toy sector driven by young adults in search of emotional comfort and community. Total revenue of collectable items in China are projected to exceed 110 billion yuan this year, according to a recent industry report.
The runaway success of other toys such as Labubu, elf-inspired dolls from Chinese toy maker Pop Mart, highlights the market's growing demand towards designer collectibles. This "kidult" trend isn't exclusive to China; young adults globally are increasingly question "traditional notions of adulthood," observe cultural experts.
Amuseables, especially the eggplant plushie—affectionately dubbed "the boss" by Chinese fans—have also inspired a wave of online jokes, with many expressing frustrations about adult life. The "eggplant boss" tag is a space where people sketch different expressions on the plushie, depicting it in different states enjoying a drink to forcing a smile.
As an illustration, a marketing professional from Hong Kong, Wendy Hui, modified her eggplant Amuseable adding dark circles around its eyes and placing a pair of glasses on the toy. She then shared a picture online captioning it: "The mood of employees on Monday." "I kept working at home even during time off," she explains. "I merely intended to express the level of exhaustion I felt."
Thus, Jellycat has become an unexpected, whimsical channel for young Chinese to voice their grievances about a slowing economy, where hard work doesn't always ensure comparable returns. Amid heavy online censorship, digital spaces remains an important, perhaps the primary, space for these types of discussions.
Its regular releases of exclusive products coupled with the retirement of older designs—an approach often called "scarcity marketing" locally—has also fueled {
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