At Yiwu International Trade City, China’s largest wholesale market, customers crowd into a small shop searching for an unlikely bestseller ahead of the Lunar New Year.

They are looking for a red plush horse with a downturned mouth, a gold bell around its neck, and eyes that appear to shy away from a viewer’s gaze. The toy has gone viral on Chinese social media ahead of the Spring Festival holiday, which this year marks the Year of the Horse in the Chinese zodiac.

Called the “crying horse” by online users, the toy was designed as a happy-faced Lunar New Year decoration, but a manufacturing mistake turned its smile into a frown.

“A worker sewed the mouth on upside down by accident,” said Zhang Huoqing, owner of the Yiwu-based shop Happy Sister.

Zhang said she offered a refund after discovering the flaw, but the customer never returned the toy. Not long after, she discovered photos of it circulating online.

“People joked that the crying horse is how you look at work, while the smiling one is how you look after work,” Zhang said. As demand surged, Zhang decided to keep making the sad-faced version.

Some young white-collar workers in China say the horse’s dour expression mirrors their long hours and workplace stress.

It also taps into a broader trend for so-called “ugly-cute” toys, popularised in recent years by characters such as Pop Mart’s (9992.HK), opens new tab toothy monster Labubu.

“These days, almost everyone who walks through the door asks for the crying horse,” said Lou Zhenxian, a Yiwu vendor who has sold festive toys for more than 25 years.

By early afternoon, racks of crying horses outside Happy Sister had sold out and employees were rushing to restock the shelves.

“We will keep selling it,” Zhang said. “This crying horse really fits the reality of modern working people.”

REUTERS

Fashion has officially clocked back in, and yes, it’s wearing Prada. We barely had time to recover from The Devil Wears Prada 2 trailer before eagle-eyed fans spotted something else: Handbags from Dubai-based luxury label Dellaluna by Silvia Paulon, carried on screen by none other than Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway.

Styled by Molly Rogers, Hathaway’s Andy Sachs is seen with the Imperial Silver Clutch, custom-made for the film, while Streep’s ice-cold Miranda Priestly grips the Louvre Abu Dhabi Bag, created as part of an upcoming collaboration with the iconic museum. For Paulon, seeing her designs land in one of fashion’s most legendary film franchises was overwhelming. “I flew to New York and hand delivered the bags myself,” she told Vogue Arabia. “After that, it’s completely out of your control. I woke up one morning and my Instagram was suddenly going crazy.”

All this buzz comes as 20th Century Studios officially unveiled the trailer for the long-awaited sequel to the 2006 cult classic. The Devil Wears Prada 2 is set to hit cinemas on May 1, bringing back the original dream (or nightmare) team: Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, and Stanley Tucci reprising their roles as Miranda Priestly, Andy Sachs, Emily Charlton, and Nigel Kipling.

How The Devil Wears Prada was a fashion reset

Fashion was the main character in the film. The costume design was led by Patricia Field, who assembled a wardrobe of over 100 outfits drawn from top fashion houses and carefully sourced pieces to give each character a distinct visual identity.

At the centre was Meryl Streep’s Miranda Priestly, whose wardrobe communicated authority, wealth, and an almost icy command. Field drew on archival pieces and worked with designers like Donna Karan to build looks that felt tailored. Priestly’s signature came from a mix of high-end menswear and statement outerwear, often in muted monochromes, and was anchored by her impeccable white hair. That’s all, indeed.

In contrast, Anne Hathaway’s Andy Sachs begins the film with a deliberately uninspired wardrobe, ill-fitting sweaters and shapeless pieces that visually underline her outsider status in the fashion world. As Andy becomes more obsessed in Runway magazine’s culture, and a lot more confident while…being run down by Priestly, her looks turn innto bold designer staples from Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, and Valentino, with pieces like Chanel thigh-high boots and a velvet Chanel coat during a key social event.

Supporting characters also wear looks that reflected their style. Emily Blunt’s Emily Charlton opts for edgier, fashion-forward pieces, while Stanley Tucci’s Nigel combines sophistication with creative flair, grounding the film’s aesthetic in real runway-level style.

GN

Streaming giant Netflix said Tuesday it will livestream BTS’s comeback concert to around 190 countries in what could be the largest live K-pop event to date as the megastars return from military service.

The global stars and South Korea’s biggest music act have been on a hiatus since 2022 while members completed mandatory military service.

All seven members were discharged last year, and the band have confirmed they will release a new album, ARIRANG, on March 20 and stage a free comeback concert in central Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square the following day before heading on tour.

“BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG will stream live exclusively on Netflix March 21,” the streaming giant said.

It said the performance would be broadcast live to viewers in more than 190 countries.

Their new album, ARIRANG, named after a Korean folk song about longing and separation often seen as an unofficial national anthem, will be their first since the anthology “Proof”, which became South Korea’s bestselling record of 2022.

The new album “contains a deep reflection on the team’s origins and identity”, Netflix said, adding a new documentary featuring the band’s return, titled “BTS: THE RETURN” will be launched on March 27.

Their world tour, kicking off in April, will span 34 cities with 79 shows — the largest single tour by a K-pop group by total performances and the widest regional reach for a South Korean artist, according to their label HYBE.

BTS are big business in South Korea. Before their military service, they generated more than 5.5 trillion won ($3.8 billion) for the country a year, according to Seoul’s Korea Culture and Tourism Institute.

The figure is equivalent to 0.2 percent of South Korea’s total GDP.

HYBE shares were up 2.5 percent in the morning trade in Seoul.

Asharq-Al Awsat