1. Branding of Japanese Super Brand
“Hello Kitty”
By: Danish Shamsher
Roll # 68 , B1
IIPM

2. Who Am I ?
 I am worth billions of dollars.
 I have been given a special honorary title by
UNICEF.
 I have my own theme park in Japan.
 I have turned 35, but am still fresh like my day of
birth.
 Google search yields more than 1.5 million results.
 Ken Belson and Brian Belmner have
authored a book on me.

3. Birth of an ICON….
 Sanrio, a Japanese company created the cartoon cat
Hello Kitty in 1974.
 Focused on selling character–branded goods to
young people
 Driven by the idea of Japanese custom of giving
gifts.
 Main Business defined as “Social
 Communication Gift Products”
“SMALL GIFTS, BIG SMILE” 

4. The Brand Kitty….
• Physical Attributes:
– Oversized Round Face
– Two dots as eyes, Button
nose
– No mouth
– Six whiskers and red bow on left ear
• Brand Identity:
– She lives in London with her parents and twin sister
– Real Name: Kitty White
– She is in Grade 3 and Blood Type: A
– Kitty is a cheerful, warm-hearted little girl
– Loves Baking cookies
– Favorite things : Candy,
Stars, Goldfish
• Brand Personality Associations:
– Cute, Lovable,
– Mysterious, Zen-Like Quality

5. Brand Building….The
Beginning
o Carried out a consumer survey revealing the
most popular cartoon characters in Japan
o Hello Kitty given a solo launch in 1975, due
to positive response
o Started selling toys, stationery items as well as
other gift articles with pictures of hello kitty
o Affordable pricing to suit the
target customer (Girls aged
between 4 and 6)

6. Attempts to Reinvent a
Fading Brand
o Growing popularity of anime characters in Japan as well
as other countries during 1980s.
o Efforts towards broadening the target segment.
o Brand extension of Hello Kitty into: candy accessories,
clothes and electronic goods.
o Shop visits conducted to understand the consumer
expectations.
o Sober black and white Hello Kitty
design introduced for capturing the older
consumers.

7. Hello kitty –mid 1990s to
2004
• Changed the positioning of the brand. Targeted
high- school girls.
• Launched design hip products like Hello Kitty
mobile phone cases.
• Revival of the brand took pace due to the
endorsement of the brand by young Japanese
singer , Tomomi Kahara.

8. Revival of the brand
• Young women remain brand loyal. Who had been
fans in their childhood continued to buy them.
• They bought Hello Kitty merchandise (toasters,
hair curlers etc) for themselves as well as for their
children.
• Early 2000s brand became popular among
4 to 30.

10. Hello Kitty Boom
• The brand became extremely popular in U.S and
some south Asian countries.
• The brand became favorite among many
Hollywood celebrities like singer Christina
Aguilera, Heidi Klum, Nicky hilton ,Ashley Judd,
etc.
• The brand becoming Hollywood Favorite
helped gain visibility .

11. Hello Kitty- a fashion
symbol
• Gained acceptance as a premium brand due to
endorsements by celebs
• Early 2000s brand reached saturation point for its
traditional products.
• Revive the brand once again by tying up with high-
end luxury items.
• Hello Kitty was used as a fashion
label by Heatherette , a fashion label
brand for spring /summer 2003.

12. Contd…
• Swarovski offered a range of Hello Kitty
merchandise like watches, jewelry, charms for
mobile phones.
• Came as a limited edition of Hello Kitty Swarovski
watches and dolls.
• It completed its 30 years on November 2004.

14. Jewelry..

15. Celebs…

16. Licensing of Hello Kitty
• Licensing helped Hello Kitty brand to extend.
• Helped to feature on variety of products .
• A popular hotel chain in Japan offered Hello Kitty
–themed suites
• Launched a line of jewelry called „ Hello Kitty pink
head collection‟.

17. Contd …
• Understood the needs and preferences of the of the
target market.
• Introduced many items every year through licensing.
• Kept the brand trendy and relevant by introducing
100 new design every year.
• Protect the brand‟s image by not featuring on
alcohol, firearms, tobacco.

18. Contd…
• Used minimal advertising. The brand believed on
word-of- mouth publicity.
• Hello Kitty involved itself in co-branding by
entering into tie-up with Mc Donald‟s Corporation.
• Gave away Hello Kitty wedding dolls with every
purchase of Happy Meal.
• By early 2000s Hello Kitty was recognized
in Asia ,Europe and America.

19. What made Hello Kitty
Click ???
• Prevalence of Kawaii culture
• Simplicity of design- simple lines and very little
detail
• Mysterious character- minimalist
• The Zen connection

20. Contd…
• Emotionless face
• Plain luck
• Thought of as „cool‟
• Functional stuff with fun design

21. Thank you!