I was recently scrolling through Instagram when I saw a story posted by our food editor, Kae Lani Palmisano, of fake Labubus in South Jersey. “They’re called Lafufu, show some respect,” I texted her.

If the weirdly endearing Labubu just popped up on your social media feeds, you’re not alone. But Labubus have been on a steady rise to fashion fame for a while now, evolving from a collector’s item ...