Credit: LunchboxLarry, FlickrTheme park merchandise strategies can be confusing when they aggressively market characters with little to no presence in the parks. Universal Orlando Resort has often sold merchandise tied to properties that either lack significant representation or have been long removed, leaving guests puzzled as to why they’re encouraged to buy items celebrating characters they can’t interact with.
A notable example is Hello Kitty and the Sanrio characters, who once had a presence in the park but have been absent for years since their store was removed. Despite this, Universal recently launched a new Hello Kitty & Friends merchandise collection at CityWalk, raising questions about whether it signals a potential return of the characters to the park or if Universal simply believes there’s enough demand for these products, irrespective of actual experiences during visits.
The New Hello Kitty & Friends Collection
Universal Orlando’s new Hello Kitty & Friends merchandise collection spans multiple product categories including apparel, accessories, and home goods, all available at the Universal Studios Store in CityWalk. The collection features Hello Kitty prominently alongside other popular Sanrio characters including My Melody, Kuromi, Pompompurin, Cinnamoroll, Keroppi, Badtz-Maru, and Pochacco.
Apparel options include an adult long sleeve t-shirt for $45 featuring multiple Sanrio characters with “Hello Kitty and Friends” and “Universal Studios” in cursive text, with icons like Hello Kitty’s bow running down the sleeves. There’s also an adult short-sleeve t-shirt for $35 in magenta pink with large front Hello Kitty design and Universal Studios logo, with a small white outline of the same design on the back.
Accessories include a phone crossbody for $35 with space for phones on the front and cards and money in back slots, decorated with Hello Kitty, Kuromi, and My Melody imagery. A coin purse for $25 features minimalist Sanrio character designs with a heart charm containing embossed Hello Kitty face and kiss lock closure revealing red interior. There’s also a hair bow for $22 with stacked magenta and white bows, the front featuring an allover Hello Kitty and friends pattern.
Home goods options include a decorative license plate for $25 featuring “Hello Kitty and Friends” text with lineup of Keroppi, Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, Kuromi, and My Melody. A candle for $23 comes in white and pink packaging with Sanrio character decorations and pink candle inside with bubble gum and berry reminiscent scent. A spiral notebook for $22 has cream-colored cover decorated to look like lined paper with black outlines of Sanrio characters.
Collectibles include a limited-edition pin set for $20 containing three pins themed to Kuromi, Hello Kitty, and My Melody with black sketch outlines. There’s a flower-shaped die cut magnet for $12 with pink background and white daisy pattern featuring Hello Kitty surrounded by other characters. A two-pack magnet set for $12 includes magnets with characters in different arrangements. Holographic stickers for $8 feature multiple Hello Kitty and Friends characters including Pochacco and Badtz-Maru.
Hello Kitty’s Universal Orlando Resort History
Hello Kitty has maintained a presence at Universal Orlando Resort through character meet-and-greets, where guests can take photos with the iconic character and receive autographs. These appearances occur periodically during the day. The meet-and-greet times can be found on the Universal Orlando Resort app under Hollywood Character Zone.
Over time, Hello Kitty’s presence in the park diminished as the dedicated store closed, leaving Sanrio fans without opportunities to interact with unique merchandise at Universal Orlando Resort.
The Universal Merchandise Without Character Paradox
Universal’s decision to release a comprehensive Hello Kitty merchandise collection despite the character’s lack of park presence creates a peculiar situation for guests. Fans visiting Universal Orlando Resort can purchase Hello Kitty apparel, accessories, and home goods, but have no opportunity to indulge in an exclusive Hello Kitty experience.
This differs from typical theme park merchandise strategies where products tie to experiences guests can actually have during their visits. When Universal sells Harry Potter merchandise, guests can visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter lands. When they sell Minions products, guests can ride Minion attractions and meet Minion characters. The merchandise connects to tangible park experiences beyond just shopping.
Hello Kitty merchandise exists in isolation, without a corresponding park presence beyond a meet-and-greet, relying solely on the character’s standalone popularity and brand recognition rather than reinforcing experiences guests had during their Universal visit.
What This Might Signal
The new merchandise collection’s arrival could potentially indicate Universal’s plans to restore Hello Kitty park presence in various forms.
Alternatively, Universal may simply recognize that Hello Kitty merchandise sells regardless of park presence due to the character’s massive global fanbase and multi-generational appeal. Sanrio characters have devoted followings that transcend theme park experiences, with fans purchasing Hello Kitty products across countless retail categories having nothing to do with Universal Orlando.
From Universal’s perspective, if guests are willing to buy Hello Kitty merchandise without corresponding park experiences, there’s financial incentive to offer those products regardless of whether the character appears in parks.
Universal Guest Response and Expectations
For Sanrio fans hoping Hello Kitty returns to Universal Orlando Resort in more than just character meet-and-greet form, the merchandise collection sends mixed signals, offering hope that one day there could be more concrete Hello Kitty activities. It demonstrates that Universal maintains Hello Kitty licensing relationships and recognizes guest interest in the property, but doesn’t confirm any concrete plans to further park expansions.
Guests purchasing items from this collection do so purely because they love Hello Kitty and Sanrio characters. The products become standalone purchases rather than souvenirs commemorating specific park experiences unless they were able to catch Hello Kitty on Hollywood Boulevard.
Whether this merchandise availability eventually leads to an increase in Hello Kitty’s park presence remains uncertain. For now, Universal Orlando Resort guests can buy Hello Kitty products at the Universal Studios Store in CityWalk while hoping the characters from the brand can get more love in the parks.