Sanrio, the firm that created Hello Kitty, has announced that the character’s designer, Yuko Yamaguchi, has “passed the baton to the next generation” as its lead designer.
After 46 years, Yamaguchi stepped down from her position as the lead designer of Hello Kitty, but will stay with the company in an advisory role.
Sanrio stated that by the end of 2026, another designer, who goes by the pseudonym “Aya,” will replace Yamaguchi.
Yamaguchi is the character’s third designer.
Five years after Hello Kitty’s original release, Yamaguchi took up the role as its primary designer.
She “listened to the voices of fans, actively collaborated with artists and designers from Japan and abroad and has grown Hello Kitty into a character loved by everyone,” Sanrio stated.
The now 70-year old Yamaguchi is known for wearing Kitty style dresses in public and putting her hair up in buns.
Hello Kitty is ‘not actually a cat’
Ahead of Hello Kitty’s 50th anniversary in 2024, Sanrio stated that the character is “actually a little girl born and raised in the suburbs in London” and not a cat.
Sanrio clarified that Hello Kitty “isn’t a human, [but] she’s not quite a cat either.”
This is not the first time the company has made this statement.
In 2014, Christine Yano, author of “Pink Globalization: Hello Kitty’s Trek Across the Pacific,” stated that the company corrected her in stating that the character is a cat.
“She’s a cartoon character. She is a little girl. She is a friend. But she is not a cat. She’s never depicted on all fours. She walks and sits like a two-legged creature,” Yano stated.
Yano also revealed that Hello Kitty is a Scorpio, a “perpetual third-grader” who loves apple pie, and that her full name is actually Kitty White.
She added that Hello Kitty is five apples tall and weighs three apples.
Hello Kitty also has a pet cat named Charmy Kitty, a twin sister named Mimmy, and a boyfriend named Dear Daniel.
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The iconic character’s history
Hello Kitty was launched during the time when the “kawaii” culture was gaining popularity worldwide.
Since its initial appearance on a coin purse in 1980, Hello Kitty has grown to become a worldwide marketing sensation.
She has since made appearances on video games, clothing, accessories, and even an Airbus aircraft.
She has collaborated with companies like Unicef, Nintendo, and Balenciaga and appeared in float form at the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade.
Hello Kitty is also set to make her cinematic debut in a Warner Bros. picture in 2028.
She has already appeared in animated series but has never spoken as she does not have a mouth.
Additionally, a brand-new Hello Kitty theme park is scheduled to debut on the tropical island of Hainan, China, next year.
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