Shopping

Why are people queuing HOURS for these viral toys in Manchester?

Where have Labubu been, honey?

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia - 11th May 2025

A viral craze has yet again struck the internet, and this time it’s a cute plush collectible toy character even causing queues in Manchester.

In Britain it’s safe to say we are accustomed to a queue or two, but this newest line which has started forming outside a toy and collectibles shop on Market Street has puzzled a fair few Mancs.

The queues aren’t appearing from nowhere either; social media users describe how they’ve walked past the store as early as 7:30am and seen dozens of people standing outside waiting.

The culprit of these queues? An adorable collectable plush toy character that goes by the name of ‘Labubu‘.

labubua toys
Here’s the reason why Market Street has those insane queues.
labubu designs
Labubu has made her way to Manchester in all her variations.
Credit: Pop Mart

If your follow-up question is, “What is a Labubu?”, don’t worry because we asked exactly the same thing before we ended up nose-deep in the world of these widely popular plush toys.

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Labubu is the name of the viral plush toy created by Hong Kong-born, Netherlands-raised designer Kasing Lung, who drew inspiration from his love of fairytales to make this worldwide cuddly phenomenon.

Recognised by their bunny-like ears, large eyes and big smiles (which some people find off-putting), Labubu has become a bit of an overnight superstar and shows no signs of slowing down.

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The general public aren’t the only ones all over these famous fur-balls either, as celebs and stars alike have been attaching them to their handbags and sporting them like a prized possession.

And these are some pretty big names too, everyone from global superstar Rihanna to pop princess Dua Lipa have been pictured with a variation of Labubu dangling from their handbag.

People don’t just want to buy these viral toys as they are, part of the reason people are so obsessed with Labubu is the surprise element as you’ll find thousands of unboxing videos online.

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Avid TikTok users will come across plenty of unboxing style videos, where collectors predict which colour or variation of the viral toy they will get before inevitably find out for themselves.

Previous Love Island contestant, reality TV star and model Olivia Attwood has got involved in this current Labubu trend, making lots of videos on social media expressing her love towards these plush collectables.

Attwood has become an unofficial mascot for Labubu through her various videos on social media, where she either unboxes or makes reference to these ‘monsters’.

@tiktokshop_uk Anyone else as obsessed as @OLIVIA ATTWOOD DACK about Labubus? We deffo are #labubuthemonsters #labubu #labubuhaveaseat ♬ Quiz, cute, silly clarinet(1583976) – nyansuke

It’s no passing craze either, as Pop Mart even has its sights set on a second Greater Manchester location set to open later this year.

This adorable plush toy character has even made its way into the rap field with UK drill act Central Cee not only having one but five variations of Labubu.

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Each Labubu falls under a category or ‘series’, Cench seems to be a fan of the ‘Have A Seat’ range with all his collectibles in a sitting position.

The series all have their own names and limited edition style characters too including ‘Wings Of Fortune’, ‘Big Into Energy’, Pop Mart even launched a collaboration with household brand Coca Cola.

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Labubu toys are exclusive to Pop Mart and available in their stores nationwide including Manchester Market Street and soon in their brand-new Trafford Centre destination too HERE.

So, that explains all the queuing, at the very least.

What do you make of the Pop Mart/Labubu craze?

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group/Pop Mart

Shopping

Tesco shoppers urged to use up £16.5m-worth of Clubcard vouchers before they expire this month

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Tesco is urging Clubcard members to check if they have any vouchers that need to be used up, as millions are set to expire at the end of this month.

Clubcard Vouchers, which are always valid for two years from issue, need to be exchanged before the clock strikes midnight on the last day of this month (30 November), and can go towards everything from the cost of the weekly shop, to pay for fuel, or to pick up a new Tesco Mobile deal.

What’s more is that shoppers can also exchange the remaining vouchers for double their value too -with more than 100 Clubcard reward partners.

You can even take advantage of some all-new reward partner deals as well.

These include the new ‘Tesco Tuesdays’ offer with Cineworld, giving Clubcard members the chance to get cinema tickets for Tuesday showings for just £5 (£2.50 in Clubcard Vouchers), and the amazing new triple value voucher offer with PizzaExpress, meaning £10 of Tesco Clubcard vouchers can be redeemed for a code for £30-off food at the popular pizza chain.

According to Tesco’s stats, if the soon-to-be expired vouchers were all used for ‘Tesco Tuesdays’, it would be enough to get 6.6 million cinema tickets at Cineworld, and if they were exchanged at PizzaExpress, they could secure a whopping £49.5 million of reward codes.

Clubcard members can earn Clubcard points in a variety of ways, including using their Clubcard when they shop or purchase fuel at Tesco, or when they charge electric vehicles at Pod charging facilities at Tesco stores.

Today, it’s believed that more than 24 million UK households have a Tesco Clubcard.

“We don’t want anyone to miss out on making the most of their Tesco Clubcard Vouchers, and with some great new offers with Clubcard Rewards this really is a great time to use those vouchers up,” commented Shama Wilson, who is the Tesco Group Membership and Loyalty Director.

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“So it really is worth checking in the Tesco app to see if you have any vouchers expiring.”

Featured Image – Tesco

Shopping

Man City to open latest Greater Manchester club shop at Trafford Centre

Danny Jones Danny Jones New Man City store location Trafford Centre

Manchester City Football Club are set to open another brand-new store at the Trafford Centre, and just in time for Christmas.

With the festive period approaching, plenty of people will be looking to buy the latest shirts and merch of their beloved team, and with the Blues now a bigger brand than ever, they’ve put plenty of time into levelling up the club shop experience.

Having opened their massive Man City store inside the Arndale back in 2023, as well as continued plans for an upgraded club shop at the Etihad Stadium as part of the ongoing campus expansion, this new venue is set to be their fifth in total.

Their third in Greater Manchester, all told, it’s also set to be one of their largest to date.

Credit: The Manc Group

Although confirmation of the plans came back in October, City have officially announced themselves in the Trafford Centre this month.

With the hoardings going up over on Peel Avenue – the section of the huge mall arguably most well-known for its multi-storey John Lewis department store – they’ll be opening their doors just next to the branch of Waterstones.

In fact, you definitely can’t miss it because not only is there a giant MCFC badge plastered over the windows, but it also happens to be right next to the big Christmas tree.

This comes after sports and streetwear franchises like Gymshark and Urban Outfitters joined the North West tourist attraction, not to mention the massive Zara and Bershka sites that opened recently, as well as other global names like Pop Mart.

man city store locations greater manchester
An idea of what the new Man City store in the Trafford Centre could look like, based on the Arndale shop. (Credit: The Manc)

Put simply, there’s been plenty of new arrivals this year, and there are several others to come.

Although we’ve not got an exact opening date just yet, the posters displayed across the window simply read “Coming November”, so Cityzens won’t have to wait long.

Furthermore, job vacancies for retail roles working within the upcoming location are already listed on the official Trafford Centre careers page.

Last but not least, there are scheduled be a number of other new openings in the shopping arcade, leisure and entertainment destination, so keep your eyes peeled on socials for more info soon.

Inside the UK’s largest Bershka store that has just opened inside the Trafford Centre

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group

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