Hello Kitty is saying hello to 50 on Friday and celebrating with her global fan club.
Across the world, fans of the iconic cartoon brand are commemorating the golden anniversary with special pop-ups, limited-edition editing merchandise and exhibitions as diverse and charming as the character herself.
In Mexico City, runners celebrated with 5K and 10K runs or a 3K walk, all while wearing the character's iconic red bows and ears or even carrying plush toys of the little girl herself.
"And to think that it was a 24-year-old illustrator who was given a very, very high-level brief of just to make it cute," noted Sunny Bonnell, CEO of the branding agency MOTTO. "It's very telling about how it's not easy to just sort of intently build or architect something like that kind of 'magic in a bottle' into your brand."
Bonnell says Hello Kitty captures something incredibly rare today: the ability to reach all audiences.
Designed by Yuko Shimizu in 1974, Hello Kitty was originally just a simple design sold on a coin purse for less than a dollar.
Today, you can find Hello Kitty's sweet face and red bow on everything from Nike sneakers to luxury Balenciaga handbags, which can retail for $3,300.
"People are looking for signals and brands that bring them back to a sense of that peace or that sense of love or nostalgia. And I think she represents that, and so I think it crosses gender, age, belief systems, cultures," Bonnell said.
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In 2023, Sanrio — the company that created Hello Kitty — reported more than $434 million in sales globally. And while the company has several other characters, Hello Kitty is its most famous.
Beyond anniversary partnerships with shoe companies like Adidas, fashion retailer Forever 21 and luxury crystal maker Baccarat, Sanrio is also sending its beloved character on a road trip across the country on a "Hello Kitty Cafe Truck."
"There's so many brands trying to reach their hands up higher and get people's attention," Bonnell said. "How do you stand out? How do you become the one-of-a-kind in your category? And Hello Kitty is that."
The character may be seen differently in Japan than here, said Mika Nishimura, a design professor at Tokyo's Meisei University.
"American feminists have said she doesn't say anything and acquiesces to everyone. But in Japan, we also see how she may appear happy if you're happy, and sad if you're feeling sad," Nishimura told The Associated Press. "It's a product strategy that's sheer genius. By being so adaptable, Kitty gets all those collaborative deals."
Shimizu, her creator, told the BBC "the main theme of Hello Kitty is friendship."
"When I first created it, I made a family of which Kitty was a part. But then Hello Kitty started to appear in other settings as the character grew," Shimizu said, adding, "Sanrio put a lot of effort into building the brand into what it is today."
But don't call her a cat. Sanrio says she's a little girl because she stands on two feet.
Her backstory? Her name is Kitty White, she's "five apples tall" and was "born" in suburban London with her twin sister Mimmy.
But she does own a pet cat named Charmy, something her owner has been for millions of people around the world for 50 years.
