Ultraman Cards Are Actually Money Printing Machines
Everyone’s probably come across Ultraman trading cards (game cards, pokers, etc.). The company behind them is Zhejiang Kayou, which raked in 3 billion yuan in revenue and 1 billion yuan in net profit in 2020 (by comparison, Pop Mart made 500 million in profit on 2.5 billion in revenue that same year).
The weird thing is that almost nobody pays attention to this company. Most people assume it’s just a small workshop operation that can’t stand the spotlight or generate serious profits. In reality, they flat-out refused to meet any investors (Searidge Capital China partners had to visit in person just to get a meeting).
The business model is basically a real-world version of the skin-randomization mechanics in Honor of Kings (similar to the old Magic Soldier instant noodles, where you’d collect cards of Three Kingdoms characters). To complete their sets, kids keep saving up and spending money on card packs (a lot like Hearthstone). Once someone finishes a set, they can resell it to other kids for anywhere from tens to hundreds of yuan — and Kayou quietly ran buyback booths to foster a secondary market, creating a whole trading ecosystem that drives further spending. They also launched an official card game mode, combining playability, monetization, and collectibility all in one.
Distribution is handled mainly by Kayou’s parent company, Yiwu Beetle Animation, which provides nationwide retail channels.
It’s an impressive company.
