Instead of fighting century-old art brands head-on, Funto discovered a completely different audience—and turned a niche watercolor kit into a global bestseller.

For decades, the watercolor market has belonged to legacy brands.

Names like Winsor & Newton and Schmincke have built reputations over more than a century, earning the trust of professional artists worldwide. At the other end of the spectrum are countless low-cost manufacturers competing almost entirely on price.

For a new Chinese art supply brand, there seems to be little room left.

Yet Funto has quietly become one of Amazon's strongest-performing watercolor brands, with multiple products maintaining 4.5+ star ratings and tens of thousands of customer reviews.

So how did they do it?

The answer isn't simply better products.

It's about recognizing a cultural shift—and building an entire brand around it.

The Rise of the "Creative Wellness" Economy

Following the pandemic, people began searching for hobbies that could reduce stress while encouraging mindfulness and creativity.

Activities like journaling, sketching, watercolor painting, and urban sketching became increasingly popular—not because people wanted to become professional artists, but because they wanted a healthier way to disconnect from daily pressure.

Google Trends reflects this shift.

Search interest in keywords such as "watercolor for beginners" and "travel art kit" has grown significantly over the past several years, signaling rising global demand from casual creators rather than trained artists.

Instead of competing for professional painters, Funto chose to serve an entirely different customer:

People who simply wanted to capture beautiful moments during travel, camping, coffee breaks, or everyday life.

That decision changed everything.

Product Strategy: Designing for People Who Don't Think They're Artists

Traditional watercolor brands are built around professional needs.

Pigment quality, lightfastness, color systems, and artist-grade performance are all designed for years of practice and serious artwork.

For beginners, that's intimidating.

Funto looked at the problem differently.

Instead of asking:

"How can we build a better watercolor set?"

They asked:

"What if someone suddenly wants to paint while traveling?"

Once viewed from that perspective, every product decision makes sense.

Their watercolor kits are:

• Compact enough to fit into a backpack
• Ready to use within seconds
• Packaged as complete starter kits
• Simple enough for absolute beginners

The goal isn't technical perfection.

It's removing every obstacle between inspiration and creation.

Convenience Is the Product

Funto doesn't sell watercolor paint.

It sells the ability to create anywhere.

Whether someone is hiking, sitting in a café, visiting a national park, or keeping a travel journal, the product becomes part of the experience rather than the destination.

That positioning also explains the pricing.

Most Funto kits fall between $20 and $40.

They're affordable enough for hobbyists while avoiding the "cheap disposable art kit" perception common among low-cost competitors.

More importantly, Funto isn't trying to steal customers from professional brands.

Instead, it's attracting people who might never have purchased watercolor supplies in the first place.

That dramatically expands the market.

Social Media: Selling the Feeling Instead of the Product

Funto's social strategy is surprisingly restrained.

The brand doesn't rely heavily on aggressive promotions or viral challenges.

Instead, most of its content follows a simple formula:

• Open the watercolor kit
• Add water
• Paint
• Close the sketchbook

That's it.

Yet these videos consistently generate engagement because they tap into something much larger than product demonstrations.

They communicate a lifestyle.

The product quietly becomes a supporting character.

The real hero is the peaceful moment of creativity.

A park.

A train ride.

A coffee shop.

A mountain trail.

Painting feels effortless because everything needed is already in one small kit.

The message isn't:

"Look how good our watercolor paint is."

It's:

"You can start creating anytime."

That emotional positioning is what audiences remember.

Influencer Marketing Beyond the Art Community

One of Funto's smartest decisions is how it selects creators.

Instead of only working with professional artists, the brand collaborates with creators whose audiences naturally overlap with creativity.

These include:

• Travel creators
• Journal enthusiasts
• DIY creators
• Lifestyle influencers
• Craft communities
• Cosplayers
• 3D printing creators

This allows the brand to reach people who may have never searched for watercolor products.

A great example is Instagram creator @animatorroseoak.

Although best known for original anime illustrations and 3D printing projects—not watercolor painting—the creator's audience consists largely of people who enjoy drawing, designing characters, and making things by hand.

Rather than asking the creator to paint landscapes, Funto integrated naturally into existing content by using its watercolor products to paint 3D-printed models.

The creator described the paints with enthusiastic comments like:

"No joke, these are the best I've used."

and

"They work great on paper, 3D printed material, walls... you name it."

For audiences already passionate about creative hobbies, that authentic endorsement carried far more weight than a traditional product review.

The collaboration generated:

• 215,000+ views
• 22,000+ likes
• 86 comments

More importantly, it introduced Funto to an entirely new audience outside the traditional watercolor community.

That's how brands expand categories.

Funto Isn't Selling Watercolors

It's selling a creative lifestyle.

That distinction matters.

Many brands believe influencer marketing is simply about finding creators with the largest audiences.

Others focus only on maximizing reach through low-cost collaborations.

Funto takes a different approach.

Its influencer partnerships emphasize credibility over celebrity.

Most collaborators have relatively modest followings, but their audiences trust their recommendations because the products naturally fit into their everyday content.

Finding creators like these requires more than browsing social media.

It requires understanding niche communities, audience behavior, and cultural trends.

And that's often the hardest part for brands expanding internationally.

The Bigger Lesson for Cross-Border Brands

Funto's success wasn't built by inventing a revolutionary watercolor product.

It came from identifying an overlooked audience and creating a brand experience around how those people actually live.

Instead of competing in an overcrowded professional market, the company created demand among people who never considered themselves artists.

For brands expanding overseas, that's an important reminder:

Sometimes the biggest opportunity isn't winning existing customers.

It's creating entirely new ones.

How SocialBook Helps Brands Find the Right Creators

Finding creators like Funto's partners is rarely a matter of luck.

It requires access to the right data, the right markets, and the ability to identify authentic influence beyond follower counts.

That's exactly what SocialBook was built for.

With a database of 200+ million creators worldwide, SocialBook helps brands discover influencers across virtually every niche—from technology and beauty to art, lifestyle, travel, DIY, gaming, and beyond.

Whether you're looking for micro-creators with highly engaged communities or established industry leaders, our platform helps brands streamline every stage of influencer marketing, including:

• Creator discovery and audience analysis
• Influencer outreach and relationship management
• Campaign performance tracking
• Fraud detection and audience authenticity analysis
• ROI measurement and reporting
• Affiliate and commission management

Successful influencer marketing isn't just about finding popular creators.

It's about finding creators who genuinely influence the communities your future customers already trust.

That's where long-term brand growth begins.