# Sanrio

**Type:** Company  
**Domain:** Entertainment  
**Status:** Active  
**Founded:** 1960  

## Overview

Japanese entertainment company that created Hello Kitty and operates a portfolio-based IP strategy with hundreds of characters. Notable for achieving $80B+ franchise value through distributed narrative architecture rather than concentrated storytelling.

## Business Model

**Portfolio diversification:** Manages hundreds of characters (Hello Kitty, My Melody, Kuromi, Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, Aggretsuko), each with distinct personality and target demographic.

**Collaboration-as-positioning:** Strategic partnerships with luxury brands (Swarovski, Sephora) repositioned Hello Kitty from children's character to aspirational adult icon.

**Blank canvas consistency:** Maintained original character design philosophy for 50+ years despite trend cycles.

## Design Philosophy

Original designer Yuko Shimizu deliberately gave Hello Kitty no mouth to enable viewer projection: "a mouthless character allows the viewer to project their own emotions onto her. She's happy when you're happy, sad when you're sad." This created distributed narrative architecture where fans supply story rather than consuming centralized narrative.

## Timeline

- **1974** — Hello Kitty character created by designer Yuko Shimizu with deliberate "no mouth" design for emotional projection
- **2024** — Hello Kitty 50th anniversary; franchise ranked second-highest-grossing media franchise globally behind Pokémon, ahead of Mickey Mouse and Star Wars
- **2026** — Sustained $8B+ annual revenue through global licensing expansion and luxury collaborations