Sanrio
As some of you know, it is my dream to work at the Sanrio Headquarters in San Francisco :) It might sound silly, but I can't completely explain or express my strong attraction for Sanrio design. Everytime I walk into the store, I want everything even if I dont need it. Why am I so deeply attracted to something that is so bluntly cute and happy? As I have been learning more about what is good design, I begin to question myself what exactly I love so much about Sanrio. I remember Lee saying that design that just looks nice is meaningless, design has to communicate something to the viewer. So in this blog I will try to explain what it is about Sanrio that captivates me.
Where should I begin?? Well, first of all, like I said in my Qoo blog, "I really enjoy the playful and imaginative designs of this product. From the bright, bold colors to the thickness of lines, Qoo is a perfect balance between cute and sophisticated. At first glance, Qoo designs may seem childish, however, if you take time to explore their websites and look closely at their products, you will begin to notice the intricate details that make this product full of little surprises." This is the same way I feel about Sanrio, but Sanrio takes it to a whole other level. Sanrio consists of dozens of characters, each complete with their own name, biography, birthday, and family/friends (who also are named). For example, this is "Pandapple's" biography:
"Pandapple is a panda boy who loves apples! You will always find him wearing his trademark apple hat, he loves sitting on his favorite apple chair and he is very proud of his bright red apple house! Pandapple and his twin sister were born in Shanghai, China but he then moved to a big fruit farm in Southern California. Here he spends his time playing with his caterpillar best friend, Imomushi, munching away on yummy fresh apples and collecting all sorts of apple goods. Born on June 2, Pandapple is cheerful, sweet and sometimes a bit mischievious. His dream is to one day enter the Guiness Book of World Records for growing the biggest apple in the world! Pandapple - he’s cute to the core!"
When I was in elementary school, I would always draw the Sanrio characters that liked. You would think that the simplicity of the Sanrio characters would be easy to replicate, and it is to an extent, but it is extremely difficult to capture the exact amount of cuteness that the Sanrio characters have. As a young child, I never really thought or cared about that, but in recent years I have realized that you can draw them over and over and never be able to quite get the same captivating effect of the Sanrio characters. Through looking really closely at Sanrio design and trying to reproduce their captivating effect, I think I might have an idea of what the secret is!! Its all about the proportions in the face. If the eyes are too close/far or too big/small, then it just won't work. With this in mind, I have been able to improve on my drawings and hopefully be on my way of perfecting the Sanrio effect in my own creations.
Another aspect to Sanrio that amazes me is their product lines. They have every product that you could possibly imagine, from stationary to toasters, surfboards, food products, clothing, digital cameras, fingernail clippers, hair flat irons, bed sheets, etc!! Each is designed specifically with the Sanrio style. In addition to this, their products are well made and actually function as sophisticated products for a mature consumer. Their wide variety of products makes Sanrio appropriate and attractive for a diverse audience. Also, Sanrio sells exclusve designs in their stores around the world. They have a Hawaiian line thats only sold in hawaii, a Japan line thats only sold in Japan, etc. Along with their enchanting design, they have an ingenious marketing strategy. They even have a Sanrio Land in Japan that is as equally elaborate and sensational as Disneyland. 
Basically Sanrio has found a way to perfectly balance cute and sophisticated. Sanrio has become such a large and powerful company with such cute and passive "friends."
posted by ashleep at 4:12 PM
2 Comments:
Wow, I did not realize that Sanrio had such an extensive product line...toaster that actually toast the character into the bread?!? I think that after reading your take on the Sanrio company, that they are almost like a sleeper company, creating things that are just cute at first glance, but in fact they have a very elaborate business plan that includes an ever-growing family of characters, each of whom have their own history and multitude of products. I agree with you about drawing the characters, in elementary school, it was the cool thing to have Sanrio pencils and stickers, and it was even cooler if you could draw the characters. But no matter how much you would draw them, it was almost impossible to replicate their exact cuteness level. The ony way you could accomplish that would be to trace the darn thing!
But overall, I think you really looked into the company and into your inner design ticks to discover exactly what it is that captivates you about Sanrio. I think this is a very important step for you toward your career, if you know what it is you like and what inspires you, then that is what you need to make it into the company of your dreams!
I find these characters that Sanrio creates fascinating because they each have a identity and life that fits into a utopian ideal society. The animals are created with human characteristics and why you might ask. Because people are social organisms and we engage these visual interpretation of life because they mimics what we would want to see if we where a child. I think the main focus group of this message is the youth in todays homogenous society.
All the characters in the town seem to be very happy and full of life and thats pretty interesting but why you might ask? And where is this town? And what is with the human girl running around when their bears that would eat her, and fairs on the roof that don't have wings?
Only a couple of the animals have jobs like some in particular are the mail goat, the bear that came out of his house with a apron and the other bear that is just waving to some one. I winder what a day in the life of one of these animals would be like?
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