In the US, Miniso is best known for building its business around partnerships with recognizable IPs such as Hello Kitty, Disney and Marvel. Yet globally, the pop culture giant has been investing heavily in creating its own characters, including Minipen, Penple Toy and Yoyo. On June 20, the retailer brought that strategy to New York City’s Grand Central Terminal, where it unveiled an exhibition featuring 50 statues of Yoyo. The activation marked the first time Miniso has brought one of its
ts original IPs into a public space in North America.
As Robin Liu, vice president and CMO of Miniso, told Inside Retail, “We’re not just a global IP store, but we are a leading IP platform.”
To support that ambition, Miniso has hired 30 new artists in the past month alone to help develop original characters. In fact, the company now plans to use its product development and merchandising capabilities to introduce curated characters tailored to the cultural preferences of different markets. While recognition of Miniso’s owned IP remains in its infancy in the US, Liu said it will become a key part of the company’s strategy going forward.
Drawing inspiration from Disney’s approach to creating aesthetic and engaging original characters, Miniso plans to focus on content development over the next 10–20 years, with projects ranging from television series to an amusement park. The focus on Yoyo is a smart place to start: the adorable character sports a pumpkin-shaped hairstyle, dot-style eyes, and a slightly tilted head.
Tom Bartlebaugh, the CEO of Miniso USA, told Inside Retail the company has been learning from American shoppers to create a more curated assortment as it opens larger stores across the country. One of the biggest differences between American and Asian shoppers, he added, is their approach to seasonal shopping.
“The US consumer has been taught to shop around seasonality, which is something I’ve been helping to introduce and explain to our partners at HQ,” he said. “We may not have Easter-specific products, but we still have customers shopping during that time period. So we need to show up with something new and different for when they do come in around those times.”
Bartlebaugh added that Miniso will continue tailoring its assortment for the US market, from beauty products that include American brands such as L.A. Girl to snacks sourced from a variety of countries.
“These changes are still in their infancy, but you’ll continue to see more localized products in line with what US consumers are expecting, while still keeping the Miniso global strategy in mind.”
This year, Miniso plans to focus on opening larger stores ranging between 5,000sq ft and 7,000sq ft. These locations will be situated in open-air centers, lifestyle centers and on city streets rather than in malls.
“I’ve been with the company since Miniso was first introduced to the United States in 2017 and was really coming in as a mall retailer. Now, malls in the US are not as popular as they once were, so we needed to go outside to be in open-air centers to live alongside the Walmarts and Targets of the world. That’s where the consumer has moved to. So last year we really started leaning into making the stores bigger and categorical expansion. We’re not walking away from malls by any means, but we’re going to be very specific about which ones we’re going to, and only then, we’re picking the best of the best.”
The company also plans to launch several larger-format locations, including a 15,000sq ft Miniso Land store in Columbus, Ohio, this coming fall and a 15,000sq ft, two-level store on Las Vegas Boulevard in the first half of next year.
Miniso expects to open 100 new stores in the US by the end of the year.
As Miniso USA continues expanding its assortment across categories ranging from beauty to apparel, the goal is to transform the retailer into a one-stop shop for family lifestyle purchases rather than simply a destination for collectibles and plush toys.
Further reading: Miniso doubles down on experiential retail with US pop-up expansion
