UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA

CASE STUDY/2019

COURSE : STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

COURSE CODE : MGT657
CASE STUDY :2020

NAME: ______________________________________________________

METRIC CARD NO.: __________________________________________

LECTURER’S NAME: _________________________________________

PROGRAMME: _______________________________________________

INSTRUCTIONS: PLEASE ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS AND USE YOUR OWN

PAPERS (10 MARKS EACH).

Hello Kitty

Hello Kitty is an idea based on a cartoon character of a small cat that looks kind and cute,
with a button nose, two black dot-eyes, six whiskers and a ribbon or flower in its hair. The cat
has no mouth, and this represents major source of emotional association for buyers, as they
can project many different feelings onto the little cat. The owner and the cat can be happy,
sad, and thoughtful or any of the feelings they want to feel together.

Hello Kitty is 25 years old but has perpetual youth. For Japanese company Sanrio Co., a
stationary producer, she has become a major brand success, multiplying profits in the
financial year ended March 31, 1998 by thirteen times during a recession (strength).
Adored by many demographic segments (strength) of the market, Hello Kitty’s main
target audience, as expected, is children but Sanrio says it has now successfully extended the
brand to teenage women from above 20 years. Hello Kitty has become an icon with global
appeal. (strength)

As the girls, who first bought her when they were young, grow older, they nostalgically buy
Hello Kitty products as adults. (strength) There are Hello Kitty tea sets, toasters, mobile
telephone cases, erasers, motorcycles, mouse pads, spectacles, and other products. (unrelated
diversification) For bedtime, there are Hello Kitty pyjamas and bed sheets. (unrelated
diversification) The company apparently adds 600 new products a month to the 15,000 items
or so already available. (threat)- products in bulk, don’t know whether people will buy to
many products per month. Hello Kitty has taken Asia by storm and has over 40 stores in
the U.S. with subsidiaries in Brazil and Germany. (strength)/(strategy-market
development)

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CASE STUDY/2019

Sanrio runs Hello Kitty cafes in Japan and has started to franchise theme restaurants, the first
of which is Maxim’s Caterers Ltd in Hong Kong (strategy-market development) /
(unrelated diversification) with more to follow (EFE-Opportunities). Franchises in Seoul
and Taipei are also on the horizon. (kiv) Apart from the brand extensions, Sanrio intends to
introduce new cartoon characters including a hamster and a rabbit. Financially, the brand has
been phenomenally profitable, even during the recession. (strength) Recently, the brand has
become a target for co-branding but in some cases, such as the co-branding (strategy-market
development) exercise with McDonald’s in Singapore – hello Kitty eclipsed the brand
partner, with thousands of people buying burgers and then throwing them away but keeping
the Hello Kitty promotional items. (kiv)

(Brandingasia.com, 2010)

Questions:

1. Analyse the factors that can be considered as threats to Hello Kitty’s future growth.
(SWOT)

Definition of generation gap

Market saturation

Eclipse – attract to technologies compared to soft toys

2. Explain any three (3) major strengths that Hello Kitty has, to support its expansion plan to

growth worldwide. (SWOT)

Adored

Storm

Phenomenally

Nostalgically

3. Identify and explain three (3) appropriate strategies adopted by Hello Kitty. (Chapter 5)

Unrelated diversification

Market development

Joint venture

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CASE STUDY/2019

4. Develop EFE Matrix for Hello Kitty with a total of 10 factors. (Chapter 3)

Opportunities & threats (5 and 5 should be ok)