If you happen to be at Emsphere mall on weekends and spot a crowd of screaming fans, please know they ain’t there for K-pop idols or BL actors. They’re after “Butterbear,” a brownish female bear mascot from a bakeshop of the same name.
Dancing cutely to popular tunes, giggling like a small girl, and dressing in up-to-date wardrobes, Butterbear has garnered more and more fans who would spend hours in line just to take photos with her every weekend. She has her own TikTok account with more than 500K followers and recently released her own music single (even though she’s not a real human). She has appeared as a guest at pop concerts and on TV shows. The hype has even gone beyond borders, leading the Tourism Authority of Thailand to hire her as a new presenter to promote Thailand.
Butterbear is a product of Coffee Beans by Dao, a long-standing Thai fusion restaurant chain. She debuted early last year as a bakery mascot and later opened pop-ups at several malls. The Emsphere store is currently the only physical location. Want to witness her in person? She visits her fans every Fri, Sat, and Sun at 2pm.