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A woman named Stella purchased her initial Jellycat plush toy amid a period of job loss during the global health crisis. Prompted by a friend's fondness for these British-designed toys, her curiosity was truly sparked upon seeing an adorable gingerbread house plushie circulating on a popular social networking platform.

While The Christmas holiday isn't widely celebrated across China, serving more as a commercial event than a religious festival, the sight of festive cottages appealed to Stella. "It doesn't mean much to me... However, I always like the sight of gingerbread houses," she explains. This led her to eventually ask a friend from her hometown to buy the item on her behalf.

That purchase occurred back in 2021, right as Jellycat was about of achieving significant success in China and beyond. "Everyone felt anxious, and no-one knew what exactly would happen," says Stella, who picked up a habit of petting and hugging her soft toys for comfort during that stressful time. Residing in Beijing, a city with some of the most stringent restrictions in the world, she spent a great deal of time indoors.

Now 32 and working as a tourism sector in the tourism industry, Stella continues to expand her assortment. It has grown to approximately 120 items, representing an investment of roughly 36,000 yuan. "As an adult, you have many things you can't share with others... and the problems we encounter are a lot more complicated than in the past," she says reflectively. "The plushies assist me in managing my emotions."

Originally created with kids in mind, these squishy toys have evolved into a global sensation, especially within China where a somewhat disillusioned youth demographic is turning to them as a source of comfort and solace.

The Rise of Adult Toy Enthusiasts

Her Gingerbread house plushie is part of their "Amuseable" collection, a set of characters with tiny faces modelled after commonplace inanimate objects, ranging from bathroom tissue and boiled eggs. These items have become a key "standout products" which "attract a broad younger adult audience" around the world, according to industry analysts.

Their growing appeal "may have a connection to a desire to feel companionship," propose experts. While it's hard to say for sure if the launch of the now-iconic Amuseable line back in 2018 was a deliberate strategy to target the young adult consumer, companies in the sector increasingly must find alternative audiences amid declining fertility rates in many parts of the world.

Jellycat entered China as early as 2015. Having laid the necessary "foundation", the toy maker was able to tap into "the tone of the pandemic"—when individuals looked for comfort amid heightened uncertainty—and built on this success there, according to business consultants.

Jellycat's fame was also propelled by engaging pop-up experiences. These retail events often featured a menu of exclusive "culinary" themed items. Many fans record themselves interacting and share the videos on social platforms.

Adaptation to local tastes has also been an essential strategy. As an example, customers could purchase plush versions of traditional British fare such as fish and chips at a temporary shop overseas. Meanwhile, items like teacup and teapot plushies were featured at exclusive stores in Chinese metropolises the previous year.

In 2024, the British company's sales is said to have increased significantly to reach an impressive sum. During the same period, it sold an estimated $117 million worth of its products to Chinese consumers on major online marketplaces, per research estimates.

This growth parallels a broader boom in China's collectable-toy market among young adults in search of emotional comfort and connection. Overall sales from collectible items nationally are expected to top 110 billion yuan this year, as per a 2024 analysis.

The remarkable popularity of brands like Labubu, elf-inspired figures by domestic company Pop Mart, highlights the market's growing appetite towards designer collectibles. This "adult-child" phenomenon is not unique to China; adults globally are starting to question "outdated understandings of adulthood," observe academics.

Amuseables, items like the aubergine plushie—nicknamed "the boss" by Chinese fans—have also inspired a wave of memes, with many expressing frustrations about the pressures of adulthood. On social media, the "aubergine boss" tag is a space where people draw various emotive faces on the plushie, showing it in different states from drinking to forcing a smile.

For example, a marketing professional from Hong Kong, Wendy Hui, modified her eggplant Amuseable adding bags under its eyes and putting a pair of glasses on it. She then shared an image online with the caption: "The mental state of workers at the start of the week." "I kept working from home even on time off," the 30-something says. "I just wanted to convey how exhausted I felt."

Thus, Jellycat has become an unexpected, whimsical outlet for young Chinese to voice their grievances about economic challenges, in which hard work no longer guarantee commensurate rewards. Amid heavy online censorship, the internet remains an important, perhaps the primary, space for such discussions.

The brand's regular releases of limited-edition designs coupled with the retirement of certain lines—an approach sometimes referred to as "hunger marketing" locally—has also driven {