Hello Kitty©

“Hello Kitty© ” was produced by Sanrio© in 1974.  Now she is loved all over the world.  The reason why she is loved is because of two attractions. 

The first attraction is the variety of Kitty.  Kitty in the 1970’s was drawn with a heavy, black line.  Her pose and dress was always the same.  So, she was losing her popularity.  However, a new designer, Yuko Yamaguchi, removed the heavy line and changed Kitty’s pose and dress.  Then, Kitty regained her popularity.  Now, Kitty has many styles, for example “monochrome Kitty,” Kitty holding a teddy bear, and so on.  Kitty has changed her style to meet the needs of people.

The second attraction is that she doesn’t have a mouth.  Yamaguchi says that a mouth mostly gives expression to feelings, but having no mouth makes Kitty give expressions that people want.  When you are sad, Kitty encourages you.  When you are happy, Kitty rejoices with you.

I’m looking forward to seeing new types of Kitty!

**Survey question: Which do you like more, Kitty with a mouth or without a mouth?

Of 18 people surveyed, a total of 15 people preferred Kitty without a mouth drawn.

Submitted by Kaori


**Copyrights to the character names/images mentioned above are owned by SANRIO CO., LTD