Copyright scmp
Fans of the popular characters Labubu, Elmo, Grimace and Doraemon flocked to see giant inflatables of the four in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour on the first day of a week-long show on Saturday, although some visitors said they had little interest in paying for entry to a viewing deck or in buying souvenirs. Residents and tourists visited the Central harbourfront to take pictures of the inflatable sculptures of the popular intellectual property (IP) characters. A market selling merchandise related to the four characters and other IP goods including from popular Netflix shows has also been set up near Tamar Park. The inflatables and the market are part of a Water Parade event organised by Hong Kong design studio AllRightsReserved, which will run until November 1. A parade across the harbour will be held on its last day. Three of the characters sit on lifebuoys: Labubu, a creation of Hong Kong artist Lung Ka-sing; Elmo, from children’s show Sesame Street, as reimagined by American artist Kaws; and McDonald’s mascot Grimace. Japanese manga creation Doraemon is on a giant red bean cake. Visitors can take photos of the inflatables along the promenade for free. Early bird tickets for access to an elevated viewing platform on the promenade and the market in Tamar Park cost HK$80, with prices reduced to HK$40 for children. Walk-in tickets to the viewing platform and the market cost HK$70 on weekdays, HK$80 on weekends and HK$150 on November 1, when the inflatables will be paraded across the harbour. AllRightsReserved’s founder Lam Shu-kam said on Saturday that all early bird tickets had been sold out ahead of the event. IT professional Timenthy Chik, 48, said he and his family visited because his six-year-old son Martin loved Doraemon. Chik said he expected to stay for around 20 minutes to take pictures of Doraemon and view the other three inflatables but would not visit the market. “The idea of having to pay for entry to buy souvenirs isn’t attractive. The prices of the goods inside won’t be cheap either,” Chik said. Retirees Elaine Sung and Ginny Lau, both 60, brought five Labubu and Chiikawa dolls from their own collection to the harbourfront. “We brought our own stuffed toys along because they are a good match with the giant inflated characters,” Lau said. But both women had no plans to visit the market as they hoped to avoid crowds and said they did not like the idea of having to pay for a better viewing spot. Tourist couple Debbie and Gerald Rude from Minnesota in the United States also stopped to take photos of the inflatables but said they were not aware of the parade beforehand. “We took photos with the ones that stood up. The reclining ones [Elmo and Grimace], the quality of the pictures was not worth it,” Debbie Rude, 72, said. Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui said at the show’s opening ceremony that the government would continue to support international IP to land in Hong Kong for collaborations with local cultural events. “Combining different popular IPs with our beautiful Victoria Harbour view, using cute popular culture elements to highlight Hong Kong’s vibrancy and creativity, shows Hong Kong’s attractiveness as an international mega-event destination,” Law said.
