Tokyo Times

Photographs from a small group of islands

Hello Kitty

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Hello Kitty housing homage

With food, phones and even banana cases now bearing the Hello Kitty logo, Sanrio must be struggling to find stuff to stick its famous feline figure on, as the Japanese giant has now introduced a phenomenally frivolous Kitty-chan doghouse.

Yet far from a crappy kennel with pussy pictures plastered all over it, the one-off creation is covered in crystals and costs an absolutely colossal 3.9 million yen (31,600 dollars). However those with more money than sense need not worry about beating the rush, as Sanrio has said that the buyer will be selected by lottery should there be more than one customer interested.

hello kitty doghouse

Which is a relief.

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Hello Hello Kitty

For fans somehow not content with the recent release of the Hello Kitty banana case, Japanese mobile phone operator SoftBank has teamed up with Sanrio to produce a series of limited edition feline phones, each one decorated with dozens of crystals to faithfully depict the deadpan deity’s rather featureless face.

Japanese Hello Kitty phone

A set of cell phones that are touted as gorgeous, although tacky could well be more truthful.

Japanese Hello Kitty phone

But either way, for those hoping to get their hands on such a prime piece of pussy, only 100 models of each design will be available, making them telephones to be treasured for the lucky few.

Japanese Hello Kitty phone

Or alternatively quickly traded online for a massive amount of money.

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Japanese giant

The dogged drive for world domination hardly endears the Hello Kitty cult to the dwindling number of non-believers.

Yet Japanese giant Sanrio certainly demands at least begrudging respect, as just when it seems that the marketing marvel can’t possibly produce a product that doesn’t already have the placid pussy plastered all over it — it does, this time with a banana case of all things.

Japanese hello kitty banana case

Fruit and fairly featureless feline fans rejoice…

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Hello Kitty hell?

The Japanese capitulation to all things Kitty related needs no confirmation here, but not everyone it seems is sentimental about a pussy past its prime or one made redundant by a more up-to-date model. A point poignantly proved by a recent visit to one of Tokyo’s numerous Hard Off second hand goods shop, as tucked away in a corner between ten-year-old turntables was a kaput kitty.

The sorry sight was further enhanced by an apparent look of anger on Kitty-chan’s usually expressionless face. A rare glimpse of emotion probably brought on by a reflection from the shop’s lights, or alternatively it could have been an exceptionally lucky shot that exposes the inherent evil behind Sanrio’s phenomenally successful cash accumulating cat.

My money is on the latter.

hello kitty Tokyo

(click image for full-sized feline fury)