On November 1, 1946, Yuko Shimizu, creator of Hello Kitty is born in Kyoto, Japan. Shimizu created the fictional character, Hello Kitty, while employed at Sanrio Company, a company that designs and manufactures products focusing on "kawaii" ("cute") segment of Japanese pop culture.
Shimizu created Hello Kitty in 1974 to personify a Japanese Bobtail cat whose real name is Kitty White born in the suburbs of London, England on November 1st. She has been described as a cheerful and happy girl with a heart of gold who bakes delicious cookies, loves Mama's apple pie, and considers her twin sister, Mimmy, as her best friend.
In the early beginnings, Hello Kitty was not well received by Sanrio's founder, Shintaro Tsuji. Tsuji regarded Shimizu's drawing of Hello Kitty as "not too bad" and appearing too simple. It made its first appearance in a small, clear vinyl coin purse that sold for as little as a few cents.
Just 2 years after Hello Kitty's creation in 1974, Shimizu left Sanrio in 1976 to get married and start a family. Even after Shimizu's departure, Hello Kitty continued to do well.
Shimizu might not have expected her Hello Kitty creation to go as far outside those cheap plastic purses but Sanrio used Shimizu's design in everything from purses, to hair brushes to stickers, toys, and many others for the young and old to fit any occasion and any room in the house.
Since its creation, Hello Kitty has become a global phenomenon. In a CNN article, Hello Kitty was an $8 billion-a-year franchise in 2013.
Today, Yuko Shimizu will be remembered not just as a designer but as someone who captures people's fascination for cuteness enjoyed by tens of millions of fans around the world.