well, hello there kitty

the other day, while catching up on e3 news coming out of l.a., ryan sent me over a link to the (new?) incredible world of online interactive hello kitty.
wow.
even though i admit to melting just as quickly as any other 25-year-old girl when i see that vacant-eyed, bow-adorned cat, i can't help but be completely baffled and bewildered by the empire that is sanrio. a few months ago i caught an article about this sanrio explosion, with the majority of it concentrating on a new book by authors, brian bremner and ken belson, entitled: "hello kitty, the remarkable story of sanrio and the billion dollar feline phenomenom." and while i can't seem to find the article now, the gist of it was this:

• hello kitty merchandise brings in roughly $500 million a year for sanrio, corp.
  
• sanrio spends virtually zero dollars on advertising and marketing

considering these two points and the reality that hello kitty today is no longer just a cartoon but a cultural icon, and i say you have yourself a pretty little investment.