Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 special edition sold out on Pokemon craze

Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Z Flip3 Pokemon Edition sold out within minutes of its release in Korea, tracking the recent runaway success of the Pokemon sticker-bread duo on the company's home turf, the company's website has showed.

The special edition of Samsung's popular foldable phone comes with Pokemon themed accessories, including Pikachu Keychain, Pokemon Palette, Monster Ball 3D Grip Talk and five Pokemon stickers, responding to the latest consumer fad and touching on Koreans' childhood nostalgia.

The edition sold out within five minutes of its release at midnight Monday. The price was 1.28 million ($1,025), slightly more expensive than the original Galaxy Z Flip3.

Samsung, the world's largest mobile phone maker, has collaborated with popular designers and brands as part of efforts to target more fashion-savvy young consumers and expand an ecosystem of accessories and their portfolios of limited-edition mobile products.

In September, it joined hands with American fashion brand Thom Browne, known for its signature stripe, to release the Galaxy Watch4 Classic Thom Browne Edition.

It also released the limited-edition Galaxy Watch4 and Galaxy Buds2 wireless earbuds the following month, produced in collaboration with Maison Kitsune, the French-Japanese electronic music label-fashion company.

In 2015, it launched the Galaxy G6 edge Iron Man Edition in collaboration with Marvel. In 2016, the tech giant joined forces with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Entertainment for the Galaxy S7 edge Injustice Edition to mark the third anniversary of the popular mobile game, Injustice: Gods Among Us.

A Samsung spokesman said Tuesday the company could not reveal the exact sales figure or additional sales plans for the Pokemon edition. Samsung also has yet to decide on the launch of the special edition in overseas markets, he added.

The Pokemon craze has been recently rekindled in Korea, as food and dining company SPC Samlip reintroduced Pokemon breads, spurring Pokemon fans to form long lines in front of convenience stores and supermarkets to get ahold of the stickers inside the bread's plastic package, which features popular characters from the Japanese cartoon and video game.

The Pokemon breads have been on and off the market since the 1990s, and the company launched its latest series in February, offering a total seven different Pokemon-themed breads. Earlier this month, the company launched three additional Pokemon dessert items, in a rush to capitalize on the popularity.

A full set of 159 stickers demands a high premium on second-hand online markets, fetching as much as 1.2 million won.

Yonhap