Hello Kitty: The Remarkable Story of Sanrio and the Billion Dollar Feline Phenomenon

Now in paperback, the inside story of the cartoon kitty that became a multibillion--dollar global enterprise The only business book to offer an in--depth exploration of the Hello Kitty phenomenon, Hello Kitty tells the amazing story of how the Japanese company Sanrio bucked the odds and transformed a bulbous, all--but--featureless cartoon critter into a multibillion--dollar global business powerhouse. Readers will learn how and why the Hello Kitty brand clicked with children and adults, across cultures, and how it continues to successfully compete, internationally, with Disney and Warner Brothers. This book is packed with valuable lessons about the awesome power of branding, marketing, and licensing to capture the hearts and minds of consumers. Ken Belson (Tokyo, Japan) covers Japanese business, economics, and government policy for the New York Times. His work has also appeared in BusinessWeek, Fortune, Bloomberg News, the International Herald Tribune, and Barron's, among others. Brian Bremner (Tokyo, Japan) currently serves as Asia Economics Editor for BusinessWeek and writes a weekly column called "Eye on Japan" for BusinessWeek Online.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgement. Introduction. Deconstructing Hello Kitty. The God of Kawaii. The Cat Comes Alive. Kitty Goes Abroad. Kitty Kulture. Defiling Hello Kitty. Branding Hello Kitty. Hello Kitty and the Ideology of Pleasure. Index.

About the Author :
Ken Belson writes about Japanese business, economics and government policy for the New York Times in Tokyo. Prior to joining The Times, he wrote about technology and finance for Business Week magazine, covering the spread of the Internet through Asia. He was editor in charge of programming at Reuters Financial Television, where he wrote and edited scripts and led a team of 35. From 1996 to 1998, he covered the Japanese economy for Bloomberg News. Mr. Belson's work has also appeared in Fortune, the International Herald Tribune, and Barron's, among others. He also speaks frequently on The World, a syndicated radio program produced by WGBH in Boston. Mr. Belson earned an M.S. with honors from the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, which he attended on a Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission Fellowship. He won the Pulitzer Traveling Fellowship for finishing at the top of his class. He also holds a teaching certificate from Portland State University and a B.A. in history from Reed College, also in Portland, Oregon. He lives with his wife, Harumi, in Tokyo. Brian Bremner currently serves as Asia Economics Editor for Business Week Magazine based in Tokyo. He is a three-time winner of awards from the New York-based Overseas Press Club for his coverage of child labor in Thailand in 1994, Asia's 1997 currently crisis and for his analysis of Japan's economic turmoil in 1998. He has also provided commentary as a guest commentator based in Tokyo for National Public Radio. In addition, he writes a weekly column called "Eye on Japan" for Business Week Online. Mr. Bremner received a journalism degree from Marquette University and an advance degree in international studies from Miami University of Ohio. He is currently working on a second Master's degree focused on the Japanese language and society with the University of Sheffield's School of East Asian Studies. He lives in Setagaya-ku with his wife, Yuki, and two daughters, Marie and Elena.

Review :
"If, like me, you supposed that Hello Kitty was only to be found on pencil cases and stickers ... this book will make you think again." (City to Cities, April/May 2004) "...tells what must be one of the oddest branding success stories ever..." (Financial Times, 29 January 2004) "...this book tells the fascinating story of this cute character [Hello Kitty] that has generated close to $1 billion in sales..." (The Chronicle (Reading), 8 January 2004) "...a great read with real insight into how clever marketing can find success in highly competitive markets." (Marketing Business, March 2004) "A bizarre but strangely addictive read." (Gulf Business, 17th March 2004)