Unboxing Surprises: What I Discovered from Collecting Sanrio Blind Boxes

I was a big Hello Kitty fan as a little girl. My collection wasn’t grand, but every Hello Kitty piece I had was special. My fondness for the character faded with time, and I never expected to meet that fangirl me again, until I had a daughter for a firstborn.

Gifts from family and friends introduced my daughter to Hello Kitty, My Melody, and Kuromi, a few of the many lovable Sanrio characters. So when Jollibee teased its collaboration with Sanrio for its upcoming Kiddie Meal toys, I marked the release date and made sure we’ll get first dibs on the six collectibles.

Just when I thought it’s a piece of cake to collect all of them comes the twist: each of the toys comes in a blind box, which means I have no way of knowing what character I’ll take home. My husband and I took our chances and bought three on the morning of its release. As we unboxed our first, second, and third, we were literally in for a surprise.

I’ve heard about blind boxes before and I must admit that I’m not a huge fan. I’m a creature of habit and routine, and I thrive in the peace that comes with repetition and predictability. Don’t get me wrong, I also love surprises, but spending money on something that’s not definite would really throw me off.

As I mentioned, there were six Sanrio Kiddie Meal toys to collect – Hello Kitty, My Melody, Kuromi, Pompompurin, Pochacco, and Cinnamoroll. When put together, they would form a “wonder” wheel, an kid’s interactive toy or a mom’s cute display.

Here’s how the Sanrio Wonder Wheel looks like as a complete collection. | Photo courtesy of Joy Katherine Bautista

But buying three Sanrio blind boxes in one go made me realize that I unknowingly said yes to the entire ride of thrill, excitement, and inevitable disappointment, all because it’s possible for us to open all three boxes and find similar characters. Who’s to tell, right?

We got two Pochaccos and one My Melody. I can’t say my husband and I were entirely happy. Although we didn’t spend more than ₱150 for each and we got our tummies full for breakfast, we kind of regretted getting three right away. We said that we should have ordered only one from that branch and one more toy from another.

Here’s a collector’s dream of a complete set! Believe it or not, he got it from 6 different branches in Cebu! | Photo courtesy of Guiller Galvez

As first timers in the blind box toy craze, we also talked about how we thought it was inappropriate for the collectibles to be in mystery boxes, especially because parents would love to take home the entire set for their kids. And it’s not like everyone who runs to Jollibee to get dibs on the toys have so much money to spare.

It turns out a lot of parents and collectors share our sentiments.

I didn’t plan on keeping our extra Pochacco. So as soon as we got home, I messaged my brothers to ask what I could do, and they suggested that I look for an online group where I could trade it. I guess my algorithm picked it up because the next thing I know, a Facebook group of toy collectors appeared on my feed. Needless to say, I joined the group.

Reading the posts sent me laughing in disbelief: we were lucky two get only two duplicates out of the three we bought. Some bought four to six boxes, to unbox only one character over and over!

“Why naman ganon?” one collector from Quezon City captioned as she got four out of four Pompompurin characters | Photo courtesy of Jhea Ann

A wheel of three Melodies: a mom from Batangas shares a picture of her wheel with three My Melody characters | Photo courtesy of Gerrielene Caraig-Bautista

Those who were into collecting for a long time were quick to share that there should have been an option to get the whole set with no duplicates should customers want to buy all six in a single transaction. According to them, this is how PopMart, a popular entertainment company that sells collectible toys in blind boxes, does it. Some collectors have even gone great lengths – hopping from one branch to another – in hopes to complete the set. But still, to no avail.

After buying the toys from three different branches, this collector unboxed 5 out of 6 My Melody and 1 Kuromi | Photo courtesy of Addon Bilibit

The community comes much more alive with their anecdotes of the mystery boxes, like posts of toys, or rather, absence of toys.

“ANG MYSTERY sa Mystery box – where is Hello Kitty?” a collector asks for a refund after unboxing a character-less toy | Photo courtesy of Abigail Angeles-Fernandez

I didn’t know anyone from that community, but the laughter, support, and the I-feel-you sentiments felt like we’ve known each other for a long time – pretty much like family.

It’s true that trends come and go, but they do come back, and we welcome the wave of nostalgia just like an old friend we haven’t seen for long. When the Facebook group was starting to get flooded with posts about trading their Sanrio toys, I remember the days of old when my cousin and I used to trade stickers with our neighbors. We were very meticulous with the size of the stickers and the characters on them, making sure the trade was fair and square.

Collectors from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao search for their missing pieces in the group, willing to trade, sell, or buy for ₱70-P100 apiece. They don’t mind paying and shouldering shipping fees, to complete their collection for their kids or for themselves. As of writing, I’ve already seen posts selling an entire set for ₱600-800, not a bad deal at all if you want to skip all the disappointment of getting duplicate toys.

Pompompurin and Cinnamoroll for sale! A collector from Bataan sells her extras for ₱90 each. | Photo courtesy of Daryll Joy Cortez Vallagar

Pochacco for swap! Davao City-based collector looks for Kuromi, Cinnamoroll, Hello Kitty, and Pompompurin. | Photo courtesy of Joy Lim Nobleza

Everyone was talking about Sanrio characters, giving a very 90’s vibe. Now I secretly wish there were Sanrio stickers to trade, too.

A few days into being a member of the toy collector Facebook group, I was already able to trade our extra Pochacco to a Pompompurin, with a mom named Erica. She must have seen one of my comments in a post that she messaged me to ask my exact location and where we could possibly meet. To cut the story short, she shouldered the back-and-forth Grab delivery fee for our trade. Prior to it, I already saw some posts of collectors being scammed, and I felt more than grateful that Erica and I had a smooth transaction.

We still have one more character to get, but I’ve learned to enjoy the ride. I’m not so much in a hurry to complete the set anymore. I’m already grateful that my daughter plays with her beautifully incomplete wheel everyday.

Moreover, it’s been so heartwarming for me to read all the thank you posts in the community, because they were able to complete their characters, thanks to honest trade and buy and sell.

I also realized that what used to be the laughingstock – the wheel with identical characters – is actually adorable! Now some are even trading to collect one and the same character.

Although some pieces were for trading, the colors in this wheel just work so well together, don’t you agree? | Photo courtesy of Jazel Jocson

Our first experience with blind boxes involved a mix of anticipation, dismay, and eventual gratitude and satisfaction. To voluntarily put myself in the entire ride was a discovery for me as much as it is a delight for my daughter. While it is a must to be practical and pragmatic as a mom in this generation, it’s not bad to incorporate some fun and surprise, to discover a helpful and cooperative community, and to get to know people in the pursuit of finding your collectibles and healing your inner child.

Who knows, we might have a toy display like this at home soon. I’ll let you know!