FUJI, Shizuoka Prefecture—The nation’s catlike icon of seemingly infinite collaborations has gained another ambassadorial title in celebration of the city‛s 60th anniversary, complete with a new look.
The overwhelmingly popular tie-up is thanks to an enthusiastic city official who noticed Hello Kitty’s birthday matched the date the municipality in central Japan obtained its city status.
Fuji as it is defined today was born through a Nov. 1, 1966, merger of municipalities that included another now-defunct city of the same name.
Its contrasting landmarks lent to the original dress designed for the character, with its bulk meant to evoke Mount Fuji and the frills along the hem representing Suruga Bay. Hello Kitty’s signature ribbon is likewise topped with roses, Fuji’s municipal flower.
A plush is the centerpiece of the collaboration. While city authorities initially planned to release only 120 to symbolize the past 60 years and the next 60 to come, it has since revised this number.
MORE FOR EVERYONE
The first hour alone brought a flood of 1,000 pre-order applications. The city saw this rise to 9,527 hopeful customers by the deadline at the end of May; these, and inquiries, came from all corners of Japan.
Rather than be sticklers for exclusivity, Fuji’s government worked out a plan to make 4,000 more plushies and submitted a corresponding supplementary budget bill to the June session of the city assembly.
More specifically, 1,200, at 10 times the initial amount, will be allocated for a lottery-based sale among Fuji residents at a price of 5,000 yen ($31).
Separately, 1,000 dolls, up from the original 100, will be available as optional gifts that taxpayers can receive for donating to the city via the central government’s “hometown tax” program.
The Fuji government also plans to sell 2,000 over the counter at the Fujikawa-Rakuza roadside rest area for around 5,500 yen.
“I hope we will be making more people happy so we can work as one to celebrate the 60th anniversary of our city status,” said Yuko Suzuki, head of the Fuji government’s City Promotion Division.
Photo spots around Fuji, including city hall, are also sporting art of Hello Kitty alongside the character Samonyan who has been named “city promotion ambassador.”
A plan is underway to organize a “Fuji city x Hello Kitty joint birthday party” on Nov. 1 and have Hello Kitty herself attend the joint celebration for the day the city turns 60.
MOTHER OF SANRIO FANS
“Residents have told us they are very happy that Hello Kitty is joining the celebration,” said Eri Yamanaka, 41, a municipal official with the City Promotion Division’s immigration and settlement promotion office, who is in charge of the project.
Yamanaka held many talks with Sanrio Co., the Tokyo-based holder of Hello Kitty’s rights, until the collaboration became a reality.
One pitch about Fuji’s charms involved what would later become central to Hello Kitty’s dress. She touted her home is the “singular municipality with both Mount Fuji and the sea” with the matching birthdays as the clincher.
Yamanaka is the mother of two daughters who are 6 and 2. Both are Sanrio fans, and she said she only discovered the birthday trivia by coincidence while looking up characters’ birthdays on Sanrio’s website.
“That point of view was new to us,” Yamanaka recalls Sanrio officials saying. “That’s so attractive as a storyline.”
“We are hoping that Hello Kitty will be used for the Fuji government’s goals, such as improving the city’s public recognition and fostering civic pride,” the Sanrio officials told The Asahi Shimbun.
The last word in the quote refers to pride, attachment and other feelings that residents have about their community.
As a member of the immigration and settlement promotion office, Yamanaka has had opportunities to attend events held in Tokyo for promoting domestic migration. However, when bringing up Fuji, she said it was often mistaken for another municipality.
“I hope Hello Kitty will help us improve Fuji’s public recognition and also let nonresidents learn more about our city’s charms,” Yamanaka said.
AloJapan.com