Hirono is POP MART's first original art-toy IP built around "emotion." It was created and launched in 2021 by Lang (Xuan Yilang), POP MART's art director and artist.
The inspiration came after Lang's son was born: he hoped the child would be "a bit wild, pure, and free, not growing into someone else's version of a person," so he named him "Xiaoye" (little wild). At the same time, Lang poured his own loneliness, low moments, rebellion, and search for his true self during his early Beijing years into the character.
Visually, Hirono is a silent boy with messy short hair, swollen eyelids, slightly red cheeks, and faint freckles, often paired with rough elements like cardboard boxes, plastic bags, and ropes. He does not act cute or please anyone; his detachment holds the loneliness, confusion, and fragility of adults.
His core motto is "Own Your Truth"—to live like wild grass. Officially described as introverted, Hirono's world has become an emotional shelter for many.
The first series, The Other One, dropped in 2021, followed by The Teeny Trouble, City of Forgiveness, Mime, Reshape, Shelter, a Le Petit Prince collaboration, a CLOT collaboration, Echo, Monsters' Carnival, and People in the Mist, among others.
In 2022, The Elephant in the Room solo show at Shanghai Powerlong Museum made Hirono the first POP MART IP with an independent art exhibition. In 2025, the first global Hirono flagship opened at Shanghai Central Plaza, extending into apparel, home goods, sculpture, and public art—moving from a blind-box IP toward a lifestyle brand.
