The famous Funko Pop! started as a bobblehead company and was founded by Mike Becker in 1998 (Clark, 2023). From the beginning, the figures had their famous characteristics such as an extremely large head and big round eyes (Funko Pop Story, 2023). The Funko Pop! Vinyls as we know them today were not produced until 2010. After a lot of changes, as Brian Mariotti became the new CEO, the new re-branded figurines were first presented at the Comic-Con in San Diego, California (The Rise of Funko POP: A History of the Iconic Collectible, 2023). Pop culture became the core of the Funko Pop! Vinyls with extensive collections inspired by famous television shows and movies. The first line was based on ‘Heroes’ and covered everything from Superman to Wonder Woman (The Rise of Funko POP: A History of the Iconic Collectible, 2023).
In the recent years the brand collaborated with Disney, Marvel, Star Wars etc. designing more and more Funko Pop! figures based on famous Pop Icons (The Rise of Funko POP: A History of the Iconic Collectible, 2023). What makes them even more interesting, specifically for collectors, is the limited numbers of produced figurines. This makes the collecting of Pop! figures even more special (Funko Pop Story, 2023). With such a rich repertoire of figurines based on famous characters, being fiction or nonfiction, the range to attract potential interests is high. Thus, it can be argued that what started as a small company with a few bobblehead figurines became a huge success within pop culture.
Want to learn more about Funko POP! Vinyls? Here’s a short documentary to watch: