Hello Kitty Con, Here I Come!

I have been a Hello Kitty fan for a long, long time. As a young Asian-American girl growing up in the 70’s, I was all about Hello Kitty. Sure, my friends & I were into Barbies, but there was something about Hello Kitty merchandise that I just had to have. I remember going mall shopping with my parents & if we happened to pass a Sanrio store, then I begged them to go inside. Inevitably I would ask my dad to buy me a small Hello Kitty plush toy, pencil, comb & mirror set or even just a sheet of stickers. Oh & those little packets of gum! I just had to buy the Hello Kitty gum even though the taste ran out within 10 minutes of popping ‘em in your mouth. They sure were flavorful though, lol!

A lot of my friends & former co-workers know that my love for Hello Kitty didn’t stop after I left elementary school. Oh no…I hung on to her throughout my 20’s, 30’s & into this decade! Even when I was employed at the Mouse House, these little figurines were proudly displayed in my cubicle.

I brought these Hello Kitty plastic figs & other similar ones to the two toy companies that I worked at in the Valley as well. True story: I was in China with my QA manager touring a toy factory for a production line inspection. In a separate part of the factory, one of the lines was producing McDonald’s toy premiums (you know, that stuff they throw inside Happy Meals). The Mickey D’s premium they were manufacturing was a Hello Kitty toy. The QA manager was like “Jennifer, we are here for our toy line, stop trying to sneak a peek at the Hello Kitty merch!”

If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I even wrote about my Hello Kitty carry-on luggage for a an article entitled My 5 Essentials for Travel.

Most recently I attended a Ju-Ju-Be event at Ron Robinson/Fred Segal on Melrose.

Sometimes it can get confusing as to what Hello Kitty item belongs to me or my daughter!

So it’s no wonder that this Hello Kitty fan is going to attend Hello Kitty Con 2014, which celebrates Hello Kitty’s 40th Anniversary.

After all, I went to Sanrio’s Small Gift Los Angeles back in 2010 which celebrated Sanrio’s 50th Anniversary.

Also when I was at Anime Expo, I made sure to stop by the Hello Kitty booth that was showing off their latest game app.

To put this into context that my Disney loving friends can understand, Hello Kitty Con is to me, like D23 is to Disney fans. Although, truth be told, I went to D23 Expo in 2011!

Hello Kitty Con is designed for enthusiasts from around the world to come together and celebrate all things Hello Kitty, Hello Kitty Con 2014 will present a full lineup of activations ranging from integrated workshops, lectures and panel discussions; special appearances and signings with Hello Kitty head designer from Tokyo Yuko Yamaguchi and more special guests from Japan.

Hello Kitty Con takes place October 30 through November 2nd, 2014. Check the website for hours, location info & to buy tickets.

To preview what’s to come at the Con, check out this YouTube video!

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was received for this post. I received information about Hello Kitty Con & simply wanted to share it with my readers. As always, my opinions are 100% my own.