TOKYO – Hello Kitty, the cute and mysterious character who graces everything from handbags to rice cookers, turned 50 on Friday – and still generates millions for creators in Japan.
The simple design of the character – who is not a cat, but a little girl from London according to Sanrio, the company behind Kitty – has a money-making influence for years to come, experts say.
A woman in the state of California in the United States (US) has collected so many Hello Kitty items that her husband built her a pink ‘special private room’ called a ‘she-shed’ to store her collection.
Inside are thousands of toys and other items featuring Kitty and her eye-catching red bow tie, including rows of sunglasses, swivel chairs and a new candy dispenser.
“People my age, you know, we’re told a lot of times, ‘Hello Kitty is for little kids,’ and I laugh at that,” said Helen of Riverside County, admitting she’s in her 50s.
Helen, who drives a Hello Kitty-adorned SUV and runs the local ‘Hello Kitty SoCal Babes’ fan club, has been ‘obsessed’ with the character since her US debut in the 1970s.
Hello Kitty’s lavish collection of toys ‘makes me feel good’, she says, describing spending hours with the toys, many of them unique, on a regular basis.
“Something in my soul will heal,” he said.
Hello Kitty started life as an illustration on a vinyl coin purse.
Since then, it has appeared on tens of thousands of products – official and unofficial – including collaborations with Adidas, Balenciaga and other top brands.
The phenomenon shows no signs of slowing down, with a Warner Bros film in the works and a new Hello Kitty theme park expected to open next year on the tropical island of Hainan in China.
Sanrio’s share price has soared more than sevenfold, pushing its market capitalization past one trillion yen (US$6.8 billion), since young CEO Tomokuni Tsuji took over from his grandfather in 2020.
‘ORIGINAL PRODUCT’
“It’s silly to say we don’t need these soft, fluffy, pink things,” Christine R. Yano of the University of Hawaii told AFP.
In fact, ‘based on the characteristics of our stressful contemporary life, perhaps we need it more now than ever”, said Yano, author of the book Pink Globalization about Hello Kitty.
“This is not a phenomenon that has disappeared or will disappear, at least not now,” he added.
Unlike other Japanese cultural exports like Pokemon or Dragon Ball, the character doesn’t have much of a narrative, with her full name being Kitty White.
She has a twin sister Mimmy, a boyfriend named Dear Daniel, and her own pet cat, Sanrio said. He loves his mother’s homemade apple pie and aspires to be a pianist or a poet.
The rest is up to the fan’s imagination – just like ‘an abstract and empty design that can speak with simplicity and elegance to more people,’ says Yano.
“I call it the original product,” added the researcher.
Some feminists say the mouthless Hello Kitty is a symbol of imperfection, but Yuko Akiyama, Sanrio’s head of global brand management, says it allows the character to ‘reflect’ different emotions.
“So if they are sad, Hello Kitty will cheer you up. If you are happy, Hello Kitty is there to share the joy with you,” said Akiyama.
Kawaii
Hello Kitty’s famous fans include Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry, and her appeal extends to the royal family: Britain’s King Charles wished her a happy birthday this year.
On Hello Kitty’s TikTok account – whose bio is ‘CEO supercute’ – sarcastic memes and photos from ‘Hello Kitty Day’ at a US baseball game attracted 3.5 million followers.
Hello Kitty is the epitome of Japanese ‘kawaii’, or cute soft power, and she is the mascot of a campaign promoting tourist etiquette in Tokyo.
A poster celebrating the 50th anniversary is on display at the Sanrio Puroland theme park, where businessman Kim Lu from Manila took his four-year-old niece on their vacation.
“This is really our main itinerary in Tokyo,” he said.
“Honestly, we really don’t know the reason for Hello Kitty’s inexplicable success,” said Lu, 36. – AFP