HELLO KITTY TURNS 50
She might be tiny, but she’s been packing a mean punch for the last 50 years.
Hello Kitty has just turned 50!
At first, the Japanese merchandising company Sanrio named her Kitty White. Eventually, her name was changed to Hello Kitty. The initial drawing was done by Yuko Shimizu, an in-house illustrator at Sanrio.
Shimizu has said Hello Kitty’s look was inspired by a kitten her father gave to her as a gift. Since then, the character has undergone three designs.
CNN reports that as a result, some of today’s biggest Hello Kitty fans are those who grew up with her in the 1980s and 90s.
The feline girl has had a busy life so far. Since her debut, she’s become a special envoy for Japan’s Foreign Ministry, the subject of several restaurants, cafes, amusement parks and a maternity hospital, and a UNICEF ambassador.
This busy life has made a lot of money for her creator: An estimated $80 million. This places Hello Kitty among history’s top-grossing franchises like Pokemon, Winnie-the-Pooh, and Mickey Mouse.
The first Hello Kitty store opened in California in 1976 and after 9/11 the brand was even better received by the American public.
Image credit: The Independent