On February 17, China will begin celebrating the Year of the Horse, a zodiac sign that symbolizes high energy and hard work. But the escape of a defective toy has suggested that many Chinese people are not feeling the vibes.
A red horse toy produced by Happy Sister in the city of Yiwu, in western China, was supposed to have a wide smile on its face, but a manufacturing error left it with a desperate expression in stores. Because the smile was upside down, the horse's nostrils could be interpreted as tears.
Despite the manufacturing error, the toy has become an unexpected success with buyers after going viral on Chinese social media and capturing the spirit of corporate fatigue and worker burnout.
It also reflects a broader trend of "ugly-cute" toys featuring characters like Pop Mart's toothy monster Labubu.
"People joked that the crying horse is how you look at work, and the smiling one is how you look after work," Zhang Huoqing, the owner of Happy Sister, told Reuters.
By Mid-January, she said she was receiving more than 15,000 units per day, forcing factories to open an additional 10 production lines.
Many white-collar workers in China have had to endure the 996 system, which requires employees to work from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week. This practice has been praised by tech entrepreneurs like Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba, but it has been increasingly criticized since 2021, after an employee at the e-commerce company suddenly died after completing a late shift.
The 996 practice was banned that year, but long overtime hours are still common.
"This little horse looks so sad and pitiful, just like I feel at work," wrote an online buyer named Tuan Tuan Father, according to the SCMP.
"Consumer products and internet memes can be a way to discuss work pressure, especially on platforms like Xiaohongshu, where consumer culture and emotional expression are closely intertwined," Jacob Cooke, CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies, an e-commerce consultancy firm, told Business Insider.
Meanwhile, wholesale orders for the "crying horse" have been placed from South Africa, East Asia, and the Middle East. Its image is expected to appear on new merchandise next year.
Zhang never figured out who sewed the horse's nostrils upside down. "Since we couldn't figure out exactly whose mistake it was, we'll just give everyone a bonus," she said.
