Losari Beach in Yogyakarta, Indonesia - POP MART CryBaby Inflatable

Wenzhou 360 Inflatables Partners with POP MART to Create a New CryBaby Floating Art Landmark at Sea

POP MART CryBaby Large-Scale Floating Inflatable Art Installation Project in Makassar, Indonesia

From a Trendy IP to a Landmark at Sea: A Deep Collaboration in Artistic Expression and Large-Scale Inflatable Engineering

Off the coast of Makassar, Indonesia, a giant CryBaby inflatable installation measuring 8 meters in height, 10.23 meters in length, and 11.58 meters in width floats gently on the sea.

It is more than just a large-scale floating art installation. It represents a deeply customized project built around trendy IP development, marine engineering, safety performance, visual fidelity, and brand experience.

As the exclusive inflatable partner for this collaboration, Wenzhou 360 Inflatables was deeply involved throughout the entire project, from understanding the IP and design development to structural engineering, manufacturing, and real-world water testing before shipment.

This collaboration was not simply about manufacturing a product. It was about extending the artistic expression of a trendy IP from land-based spaces into a real marine environment.

A Deep Collaboration Across IP, Art, and Engineering

The success of an IP is never determined solely by the character itself. Its true value lies in its ability to continuously enter new environments and establish emotional connections with different cities, spaces, and audiences.

The IP rights involved in this project are owned by POP MART International Group. Its IP portfolio includes globally influential trendy IPs such as MOLLY, DIMOO, SKULLPANDA, and LABUBU, supported by a comprehensive system covering IP authorization review, sample approval, and production quality control.

Throughout our long-term collaboration, Wenzhou 360 Inflatables has strictly followed the globally standardized ILS factory inspection and FAMA-authorized production management systems. With standardized manufacturing capabilities, rigorous quality management, and extensive experience in IP product production, we provide stable and reliable support for collaborative projects.

For large-scale IP inflatables, the challenge is never simply to “make the character bigger.”

When a product moves from shopping malls and exhibition halls into an open-water environment, it faces a completely different set of manufacturing challenges: larger dimensions, more complex environmental conditions, stricter visual requirements, and the need to meet real-world water installation and operational requirements.

Project Background: Bringing CryBaby to Life on the Waters of Makassar
The customized product for this project was a POP MART CryBaby floating inflatable decoration for marine display, with actual dimensions of:

• Length: 10.23 meters
• Width: 11.58 meters
• Height: 8 meters

The installation was also equipped with an elliptical floating platform.

From a distance, the giant CryBaby appears to float quietly between the city and the coastline.

But before the product ever entered the water, the first challenge was not simply how to make it larger.

The real question was:

How could we enlarge the visual expression of the CryBaby IP while ensuring that this nearly 10-meter-scale inflatable could genuinely adapt to a marine environment?

The Client's Core Challenge: It Had to Look Great — and Withstand a Real-World Environment

Large-scale IP inflatable projects often face the same fundamental challenge: the visual presentation shown in a rendering and the performance of the actual product in a real environment can be two completely different things.

For a large floating inflatable installation, the client is concerned with much more than whether the character looks accurate.

Key considerations include:

• Whether the large-scale structure can maintain a stable shape after inflation
• Whether the product is suitable for actual installation and use in a marine environment
• Whether the outer shell can maintain its intended visual appearance
• Whether large-format printing can accurately reproduce the details of the IP
• Whether light passing through the inflatable will create uneven brightness
• Whether complex panel connections will affect the overall appearance
• Whether the finished product has undergone real-environment testing before shipment

These issues cannot be fully addressed through experience or theoretical judgment alone.

Therefore, from the design development stage onward, we approached the project simultaneously from three perspectives:

Artistic effect + Engineering structure + Water-based application

Nearly 2,000 Cut Panels: The Precision Manufacturing Behind a Large-Scale Artwork
CryBaby features a large number of soft, rounded curves in its appearance.

When the character is enlarged to 10.23 meters in length, 11.58 meters in width, and 8 meters in height, what may appear to be a simple silhouette becomes an extremely complex three-dimensional structural challenge.

Every individual cut panel is more than simply a piece of material.

Together, these panels determine:

• The overall proportions of CryBaby
• The facial expression of the character
• The three-dimensional appearance of the outer shell
• The smoothness of the assembled curved surfaces
• The final shape of the product after inflation

The real difficulty lies in ensuring that every individual component meets structural requirements while ensuring that all the panels, once assembled, still accurately reproduce the original IP's appearance, expression, proportions, and artistic language.

This is also one of the key differences between large-scale IP inflatable manufacturing and ordinary inflatable products.

Dual-Process Reinforcement: Addressing the Challenges of the Large Outer Shell

The outer shell of CryBaby is an important part of the overall visual structure.

Due to its enormous size and complex curved surfaces, relying solely on conventional joining methods would make it difficult to achieve both visual quality and structural stability.

To address this challenge, we applied a dual-process approach to the outer shell.

On one hand, sewn panel connections were used to reinforce the structure and enhance the overall stability of the large outer shell.

On the other hand, detailed visual treatment was applied to the visible areas to achieve a refined final appearance.

The structural reinforcement may remain hidden inside the product, but it determines whether the artistic effect can remain intact over the long term.

For large-scale decorative installations, truly professional manufacturing means allowing the audience to see the character itself — rather than the compromises made during manufacturing.

Printing and Visual Reproduction: When the Product Gets Bigger, the Details Cannot Disappear

One of the greatest values of an IP product lies in the emotions conveyed by the character.

For CryBaby, that emotional expression depends heavily on facial details, color transitions, and localized graphic elements.

Increasing the size of the product does not mean that the details can simply be enlarged and allowed to become blurred.

In fact, the larger the product, the more likely it is to be viewed from different distances and angles, making printing accuracy even more important.

Therefore, for detailed printed areas, we used an Epson printer with a heat-transfer printing process to achieve more accurate reproduction of graphic details.

This process improves the clarity of localized graphics and provides good resistance to scratching, helping maintain color stability during long-term use and reducing the risk of fading.

From a distance, the installation appears as a giant floating art landmark on the sea.

Up close, the emotion, graphics, and details of CryBaby remain clearly perceptible.

What was enlarged was the scale — not at the expense of detail.

Before Shipment, We Put It in Real Water First

For water-based projects, theoretical assessment is important, but actual performance in real water conditions is even more critical.

Therefore, after production was completed and before official shipment, we conducted an on-site water test.

This test was not simply an inspection of the product's appearance. It was also a practical validation based on the actual application environment.

Through the on-site water test, we verified the product's actual installation and operational performance and confirmed that the inflatable CryBaby met the requirements for installation and use in a water-based environment.

This step addressed a very practical concern for the client:

They did not need a product that could only be displayed on a factory floor.

They needed a large-scale floating inflatable decoration that was genuinely designed for and validated against the actual project environment.

From manufacturing completion and inflation testing to real-world water validation, our goal was to identify and resolve potential issues before the product left the factory.

For large-scale international projects, we believe that true quality management should not begin only after the client receives the product.

From “Manufacturer” to “Project Partner”

For Wenzhou 360 Inflatables, the CryBaby floating inflatable project in Makassar, Indonesia, was far more than a simple order and delivery.

From the requirements of the IP authorization system and sample approval, to the structural manufacturing of nearly 2,000 cut panels; from the dual-process treatment of the large outer shell, to high-precision heat-transfer printing; from the internal mesh reinforcement system designed to achieve uniform light transmission, to the final on-site water testing — the entire process was more like an in-depth collaboration built around one common objective:

To ensure that the artistic expression of a trendy IP could be accurately brought to life in the real world.

As the exclusive inflatable partner for the collaboration, our responsibility was not limited to manufacturing the product.

We were also responsible for building a reliable bridge between IP creativity and large-scale physical realization.

We understand the strict requirements for IP visual fidelity, as well as the complex challenges that large-scale inflatables face in terms of materials, structural engineering, printing, and real-world application environments.

That is why what we aim to provide is never simply an inflatable product.

Instead, we provide a complete solution covering IP review requirements, product structure, visual reproduction, manufacturing quality, and real-world application testing.

From concept to production, from IP artwork to a large-scale physical installation, Wenzhou 360 Inflatables turns creative IP into reliable, immersive, real-world experiences.