Is Hello Kitty and Sanrio the same thing?

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What is the difference between Hello Kitty and Sanrio?

Sanrio and Hello Kitty have become quite synonymous with each other over the years. It is natural – Hello Kitty is Sanrio's flagship character and the brand's face. However, this leads to the fans wondering if they are basically the same.

Hello Kitty and Chococat celebrate a birthday on a pink background.

Family

All Sanrio -character's birthdays

Do you share a birthday with a Sanrio character?

It does not help when Sanrio himself refers to groups of characters such as a collective “Hello Kitty & Friends”. However, there is a distinction between the two, which we explain to help you understand the difference more and get a grip on the relationship between Hello Kitty and Sanrio. Here's everything you need to know.

What is the difference between Hello Kitty and Sanrio?

Sanrio is the company that owns the brand and character Hello Kitty. So Hello Kitty falls under the Hello Kitty umbrella, rather than the two being one and the same.

However, Hello Kitty is Sanrio's most popular and famous characterSo she is often used as the company's face and is its mascot.

Sanrio
Hello Kitty
- Character created by yuko shimizu
- Created in 1974
- First appeared on a coin bag sold in Japan

Hello Kitty & Friends

Several popular Sanrio characters gathered.

Some goods collections refer to the popular Sanrio characters like 'Hello Kitty & Friends'that causes further confusion between the characters Sanrio and Hello Kitty.

There was also a TV show called The Adventures of Hello Kitty & Friends in the late 2000s, which has made many believe that this is what the brand is called.

However, this tends to just refer to the most important and most popular Sanrio characters (Those you usually see goods of) rather than the entire 450+ guard list. Hello Kitty & Friends usually refer to: