Top Toy, a Chinese blind box and collectible toy brand rivalling Labubu-maker Pop Mart, has reached a valuation of about HK$10 billion ($1.3 billion) after raising a strategic financing from Singapore’s Temasek Holdings.
A subsidiary of US- and Hong Kong-listed Chinese home goods and toy retailer Miniso Group, Top Toy crossed the unicorn valuation as it became the fastest-growing business under the parent group.
Its revenues from the April-June period reached $56.1 million, up 87% year-over-year (YoY). In comparison, revenues from Miniso’s longest-standing core business of operating a chain of variety stores in China and globally grew 19.5% to $637 million during the period.
Overall, the entire group recorded $693.2 million in Q2 revenues, representing a YoY increase of 23.1%, according to Miniso’s latest financial results.
Miniso’s public disclosure of the Temasek investment in Top Toy came just months after the parent group reportedly sought to spin off the dedicated toy brand for an initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong. Miniso was said to have hired JPMorgan and UBS, and may bring other banks on board to arrange the IPO deal, Bloomberg reported in June, citing sources.
Although at $1.3 billion, Top Toy’s valuation is only a fraction of its competitor Pop Mart, which commands a market cap of approximately $55.7 billion, the younger trend toy brand has a rapidly-expanding store network. Its number of stores reached 293 as of June 30, an increase of 98 net new stores from the same time last year.
Miniso said said Top Toy started expanding into the overseas market in Q4 2024 to align with the group’s going-global focus. In Q2, overseas revenue contributed to 42.6% of revenue from its Miniso retail brand, compared to 39.5% in the same period last year.
