New York is gross — and we love it.
A new pop-up is raising a big stink, celebrating the city’s signature grime with a cheeky collection of rat-themed merchandise and chaotic charm. Among the highlights is the sold-out Ratbubu: a tattooed and pierced Labubu dressed like a rodent.
The WELOVENYC “Comeback Collection” features everything from creepy Ratbubu plushies to trash-bag earbud covers ($25), “Legal Cocaine” coffee mugs ($35), and “S-t Shield” sneaker guards ($12). True New Yorkers are embracing the grit and grime of our beloved dirty city through this quirky lineup.
“It’s more about what New York is really like. The funky stuff,” Tanya De Poli, a co-creator of the WELOVENYC collection, told The Post. This curious compilation is a collaboration between numerous New York artists, which drew a long line of locals to the dingy corner of Walker and Lafayette for its Friday night opening.
“Rats are a part of that, so why not play that up?” she added. That seems about right, considering the Big Apple has even employed a “rat czar” and features a rat whisperer who offers tours of the city’s most populous rodent hangouts.
Shoppers were greeted at the teeny pop-up space at 101 Lafayette St. by a back wall covered in real rat traps spray-painted with “We Heart NYC.” Hanging there were some of the creepy-but-cute $55 Ratbubus, the store’s priciest item.
The first 300 limited-edition toys sold out on opening night, sending desperate fans back to the store Saturday morning or sliding into the team’s DMs begging for one. “They went crazy,” De Poli told The Post with a laugh as a fresh shipment arrived Monday afternoon.
Labubus are small, plush toy keychains of an elf-like monster adorned with pointed ears, a wide serrated grin, large eyes, and fuzzy costumes. These have gained popularity after being sported on the designer bags of celebrities like Rihanna, Dua Lipa, BLACKPINK’s Lisa, David Beckham, Emma Roberts, Hilary Duff, Kim Kardashian, and countless others. Some have sold for as high as $10,000.
But the new, coveted Ratbubus are much cheaper—at least for now.
Opening night also offered free, pre-designed “flash” tattoos by Chris Torres with any $50 purchase. The team was stunned by how many people waited patiently to have a rat permanently inked on their skin.
However, don’t worry if you have FOMO: Ratbubus and more rat tattoos return Tuesday night, this time with rat-shaped latte art by Moonface. Keep in mind, though, that only 100 Ratbubus will be available, so you’d better hurry.
The third and final Ratbubu drop happens Thursday, capped off with a rat costume contest so fans can twin with their new furry accessories.
“I knew it would be both memorable and iconic. One of my favourite aspects of this is the New York creatives involved who came together to make this happen,” Rick McGuire, the founder and creator behind SubwayCreatures, told Little Black Book. He partnered with the WELOVENYC team to curate the pop-up, which will run through Saturday, Nov. 1.
Among the artists popping up is Pamela Barsky, known as the “Original New York Bag Lady” for her line of scrawled-on totes. Her radical rodent bags ($35) offer phrases that include “Sometimes I think the rats run this city better than we do” and “Real New Yorkers don’t scream when they see a rat.”
“It’s the new and more honest New York,” WELOVENYC co-creator Checha Agost Carreno proclaimed to The Post, celebrating the authenticity of the project which clearly has an appreciative homegrown audience. “We didn’t want this collection to be for the tourists,” De Poli added.
If you’re ready to embrace the funky, gritty spirit of New York, this pop-up is definitely worth a visit. But hurry—these rats are running wild and won’t stick around for long!
https://nypost.com/2025/10/27/lifestyle/nycs-creepy-ratbubu-is-here-to-terrify-your-dreams-just-in-time-for-halloween-but-good-luck-getting-one/