【紐約時報】新一代偶像呼之欲出Hello Kitty要和我們說再見

1、【紐約時報】新一代偶像呼之欲出，Hello Kitty要和我們說再見？東京一家商店的Hello Kitty。這個問世已36年的卡通形象正漸漸失去市場。但是它的最初設(shè)計者們還在為尋找誰來替代而頭疼不已。Sanrio的主席辻信太郎與Hello Kitty。辻信先生多年前就擔(dān)心過Hello Kitty走紅的太快。東京今年已經(jīng)36歲的HelloKitty很可能將壽終正寢。這正是Sanrio公司的執(zhí)行官們所擔(dān)心的問題。這家日本公司于1974年創(chuàng)造了這個卡通貓，自面世以來，這個可愛的小白貓創(chuàng)造的巨額收益約合一年50億美元。多年來，Hello Kitty的授權(quán)產(chǎn)品涉及公仔、服裝、飯盒、文具、廚具，還進入了紐

2、約感恩節(jié)盛大游行，甚至臺灣長榮航空的一輛空客上也有HelloKitty。但是Hello Kitty的受歡迎程度已經(jīng)出現(xiàn)了下降的跡象，特別是在日本本土，10年來銷量下降，使得公司必須著力于尋找新的流行卡通形象。除了Hello Kitty，Sanrio公司的SpottieDottie（一只穿著粉色外套的斑點狗）和Pandapple（蘋果熊，一只小熊貓）這兩種產(chǎn)品的市場反響也非常不好。即便是相對來講比較受歡迎的MyMelody（一只兔子）和TuxedoSam（一只小企鵝），也很難企及Hello Kitty曾經(jīng)的轟動市場效應(yīng)?！拔覀冋娴男枰恍┬聳|西了，”Sanrio的首席Hello Kitty設(shè)計師

3、山口裕子（Yuko Yamaguchi）說，“一個卡通形象從面世到漸漸被不同市場接受要經(jīng)歷很長的過程，但是HelloKitty太紅了，都影響到了我們其他卡通形象的推廣了?！盨anrio新近推出過一種叫寶石寵物（Jewelpet）的卡通形象，這一組動物一共有33個，眼睛閃亮，形象各異。比如叫“鉆石”的是一只黑貓，戴粉色蝴蝶結(jié)，扮成女孩的形象。叫“藍寶石”則很愛扮酷，喜歡穿藍色衣服。Sanrio考慮有這么一組龐大的卡通形象，各類人總能在當(dāng)中找到自己喜歡的。但是Sanrio的救世主卻不會這么快就誕生的。在由東京的調(diào)查公司Character Databank完成的權(quán)威市場調(diào)查中，Hello Kitty

4、自從2002年從日本最暢銷卡通形象的寶座上下來之后，就再也沒有重返巔峰過了。本月公布的最新調(diào)查結(jié)果顯示，Hello Kitty僅排名第三，被前兩名遠遠甩下。排名第一的是面包超人，由日本電視臺推出，面包超人的形象是由日本的一種果醬面團而來。排第二的則是任天堂出品的經(jīng)久不衰的游戲動畫人物皮卡丘。而且Sanrio還面對著來自小公司的競爭。San-X之前只是個默默無名的文具生產(chǎn)商，但是最近他們推出的兩個新卡通形象大受追捧，這便是趴趴熊（Tarepanda）和輕松小熊（Rilakkuma），其中輕松小熊在CharacterDatabank公布的調(diào)查中名列最受歡迎卡通形象第五位。日本角色設(shè)定工作室（Fan

5、works）是一個制作并提供咨詢意見的卡通形象公司，其首席執(zhí)行官高山光（Hikaru Takayama）在東京Contents Market最近的一次會議上說：“卡通人物市場其實是一個非常開放的領(lǐng)域，它的成功與否歸根結(jié)底取決于如何管理?！薄斑@樣的話，也許小規(guī)模的企業(yè)能更快的醞釀出新的點子，”高山先生以日本風(fēng)靡的漫畫書和動畫產(chǎn)業(yè)為例，說，“卡通形象可以通過漫畫、動畫來塑造，這是一個存在著巨大潛力的市場?！弊?999年以來，Sanrio公司通過Hello Kitty的獲利就一直在減少，包括直接的產(chǎn)品銷售，也包括公司授權(quán)的衍生商品。上周五Sanrio通報，在截止到3月的過去12個月里，公司在日本的總

6、銷售額下降了3.3個百分點，也是包括直接的產(chǎn)品銷售和授權(quán)商品獲利，都大幅縮水。公司稱，Hello Kitty首先在日本出現(xiàn)了市場疲軟，而且是嚴(yán)重的疲軟。不過，Hello Kitty的海外銷售額卻一度躍增了28%，使得Sanrio公司去年的凈利潤達到了43.7億日元，遠好過前年的15億日元的年度赤字。Sanrio公司認(rèn)為，海外市場收益的暴增，主要原因有二，一是因為公司會計變更，二是因為去年是HelloKitty的35歲生日，這一慶典為公司贏得了很多海外的合同。執(zhí)行部主任江守進（Susumu Emori）上周五指出，Sanrio現(xiàn)在有三成的收入要依靠海外市場，但是江守對Sanrio未來的海外市場前

7、景表示擔(dān)憂?！斑^去一個季度的情況非常特殊，而我們預(yù)計今年的銷售額和利潤都會下降?！彼f。分析家認(rèn)為，導(dǎo)致目前困難局面的原因之一就是Sanrio對Hello Kitty的“過度開發(fā)”，像是T恤、廁紙乃至多士爐等產(chǎn)品都屢見不鮮。Sanrio公司最近被迫要消除Hello Kitty和諧樂園的5億日元的債務(wù)，盡管依舊保持公園開放。和諧樂園是日本最大的兩個卡通主題樂園之一，但近來游客量已經(jīng)減少。早稻田高級研究所的副教授七丈直弘（NaohiroShichijo）一直從事創(chuàng)造性產(chǎn)業(yè)的研究，他指出：“Sanrio一開始非常謹(jǐn)慎，以確保Hello Kitty的市場效應(yīng)在自己控制范圍內(nèi)。這也是卡通行業(yè)的一種潛規(guī)則

8、：要想一種卡通形象長盛不衰，就不能讓它一下子太過大紅大紫?！?974年，Hello Kitty的形象最初出現(xiàn)在塑料錢包上，轉(zhuǎn)瞬之間就風(fēng)靡全日本。面世的頭三年，Sanrio公司的銷售額增加了7倍。Sanrio的創(chuàng)始人兼主席辻信太郎（Shintaro Tsuji）當(dāng)時就很擔(dān)心，怕消費者的熱情來也快去也快。70年代末，Sanrio的銷售額曾一度跌至低谷，而到了日本經(jīng)濟衰退的90年代中期，其銷售額又再次下滑。但在2000年左右，Hello Kitty又出現(xiàn)了令Sanrio都感到意外的強勢反彈，當(dāng)時好萊塢的明星也穿著Hello Kitty的T恤，用印著Hello Kitty的包?！暗?，正所謂盛極必衰，

9、”七丈教授說，“人們總會厭倦它的?，F(xiàn)在的Sanrio就很困難了?！盨anrio也嘗試過讓Hello Kitty跟上時代潮流，比如說，在過去三年里，Sanrio在設(shè)計時已經(jīng)減少了一些日本人所偏愛的“卡哇伊”的成分，多用黑色，就像以往使用粉色一樣頻繁，這樣就使得Kitty貓的形象更加出位。但是Sanrio的東京辦公處仍然彌漫著危機四伏的氣息。以山口為首的30人的設(shè)計團隊，正在努力開發(fā)新的卡通形象。在例會上，每個設(shè)計師都會提交多達20個卡通形象，供山口篩選。這當(dāng)中可能會選出12個，在Sanrio位于東京的試點商店進行銷售，測試市場反應(yīng)。Sanrio還要求設(shè)計者們構(gòu)思新形象時，能夠確保新形象可以通過多

10、種媒體進行推廣這是Sanrio在Hello Kitty身上吸取的教訓(xùn)。Kitty貓沒有嘴巴，不能說話，也就與電視動畫無緣，從而斷了Sanrio公司的一條重要財路。Sanrio公司當(dāng)年也試過讓Kitty貓說話，并搬上了電視，據(jù)山口說，這一舉動引發(fā)了廣大Kitty粉絲的不滿，因為他們已經(jīng)接受了沒有嘴巴的Kitty的形象了。盡管Sanrio也絞盡腦汁為卡通人物編了一系列背景故事，比如說，他們?yōu)镵itty貓定位的是一只生于倫敦、愛吃曲奇餅的貓，但是這些故事并不精彩，也沒有如愿拉來大批粉絲。分析家認(rèn)為，卡通形象塑造缺乏個性，是Sanrio生產(chǎn)商品時的缺點之一。與此形成鮮明對比的是沃爾特·迪斯尼

11、塑造的卡通形象。迪斯尼的卡通人物都是通過大片和觀眾見面，形成轟動效應(yīng)，這之后再發(fā)展后續(xù)劇情。著名電影星際寶貝就是個很好的例子。電影講述了一個夏威夷的女孩和她的外星人朋友的故事，這個故事后來成功的排成電視動畫劇集，并且迪斯尼通過授權(quán)其他衍生商品，獲取了巨額利潤。而且星際寶貝在日本也取得了巨大成功，甚至在日本播出的動畫劇集把主人公換成了日本女孩尤娜（Yuna），故事背景也換成了沖繩，以迎合本土觀眾。Sanrio要求設(shè)計師們將受眾集中在小學(xué)生甚至更低齡兒童身上盡管日本的主要消費群體比他們要年長。寶石寵物系列的首席設(shè)計師奧村美雪（Miyuki Orumura）認(rèn)為，年幼的孩子如果喜歡某個卡通形象，以后

12、也會一直喜歡下去。“如果一個人小女孩的時候喜歡上某個卡通形象，她至少直到少女時代也會對這個形象厚愛有加的。”奧村說道，“等她有了孩子，她還會給自己的孩子買同樣的卡通產(chǎn)品，而這正是我們所希望的?！盜n Search of Adorable, as Hello Kitty Starts to Fade - NYTimescomTOKYO At age 36, Hello Kitty may be running out of product lives.That is the fear of executives at the Sanrio Corporation, the Japanese co

13、mpany that created the cute, cartoonish white cat in 1974, and groomed her into a global marketing phenomenon worth $5 billion a year.In Japan and around the world, Hello Kitty has been licensed over the years for products that include dolls, clothes, lunch boxes, stationery, kitchenware, a Mac

14、ys parade balloon and even an Airbus owned by Taiwanese airline EVA Airways. But amid signs that Hello Kittys pop-culture appeal is waning, especially at home, where sales have shrunk for a decade, the company has struggled to find its next-generation version of adorable.Sanrios recen

15、t flops include Spottie Dottie, a pink-frocked Dalmatian, and Pandapple, a baby panda. Even the moderately successful My Melody (a rabbit) and TuxedoSam (penguin) show no signs of achieving global Kitty-ness.“We badly need something else,” said Yuko Yamaguchi, who has been Sanrios top Hello Kitty de

16、signer for most of its 36 years. “Characters take a long time to develop and introduce to different markets,” Ms. Yamaguchi said. “But Kitty has been so popular its overshadowed all our other efforts.”O(jiān)ne of Sanrios latest efforts is Jewelpet, a group of 33 sparkly eyed animals each with its ow

17、n look. Diamond the black kitten is ladylike and decks out in pink bows. Sapphire is cool and prefers to wear blue. Sanrios thinking is that with so many to choose from, one has to stick.A Sanrio savior would arrive not a moment too soon.In a closely watched ranking of Japans most popular characters

18、, compiled each year using sales data by the Tokyo-based research firm Character Databank, Hello Kitty lost her long-held spot as Japans top-grossing character in 2002 and has never recovered.In the latest survey, released this month, Kitty ranked a distant third, behind the leader, Anpanman, a char

19、acter that is based on a Japanese jam-filled pastry and is produced by Nippon Television. The second spot is still held by the venerable game and animation brand Pokémon, owned by Nintendo.Sanrio is also being usurped by smaller, nimbler rivals. The formerly little-known stationery maker San-X

20、has scored two huge hits in Japan with its panda character, Tarepanda, and its bear, Rilakkuma which has charged up the Character Databank charts, ranking fifth in the latest survey.“The character business is basically a wide-open field,” Hikaru Takayama, chief executive of Fanworks, an animation an

21、d character consultancy here, said at a recent convention of the Tokyo Contents Market. “It all comes down to management.”“Going forward, perhaps smaller companies will be quicker to come out with new ideas,” Mr. Takayama said. “Characters can develop into manga, anime, potentially a big business,”

22、he said, referring to the popular Japanese comic book and animation art forms.Sanrios sales, which come from products as well as licensing, have reflected Kittys fading fortunes, shrinking for 10 consecutive years since 1999. The companys overall sales in Japan fell 3.3 percent in the 12 months endi

23、ng in March, Sanrio announced Friday, as both licensing and sales of good slumped. Hello Kitty fatigue is hitting Japan first, and hard, the company indicated.But a one-time 28 percent jump in overseas sales which Sanrio attributed to an accounting change, as well as several big contracts overseas t

24、ied to Hello Kittys 35th birthday celebrations helped the company swing back to a net profit of 4.37 billion yen, in contrast to a loss of 1.50 billion yen the previous year.Sanrio now relies on overseas sales for 30 percent of its revenue, the companys executive director, Susumu Emori, said Friday.

25、 But Mr. Emori was cautious about Sanrios future overseas prospects. “The last quarter was extraordinary, and we expect both sales and profit to fall this year,” he said.Analysts say part of the problem is that Sanrio has oversold Hello Kitty, which appears on products as various as T-shirts, toilet

26、 paper and toasters. Sanrio was recently forced to write off the 500 million yen in debt held by Harmony Land, one of its two character theme parks in Japan, after a falloff in visitors, although the park remains open.“Sanrio was initially very careful in making sure the Hello Kitty phenomenon didnt

27、 get out of hand,” said Naohiro Shichijo, an associate professor in creative industries at the Waseda Institute for Advanced Studies in Tokyo. “Thats the unspoken rule of the character business: you cant let a character get too wildly popular all at once,” he said. “You want to go for longevity.”Hel

28、lo Kitty, introduced on a vinyl coin purse in 1974, became an instant phenomenon in Japan, and sales at Sanrio grew sevenfold in the cats first three years. But even then Sanrios founder and president, Shintaro Tsuji, expressed nervousness that consumers would burn out on the brand. Sanrios sales ta

29、pered off in the late 1970s, and then again in the mid-1990s when Japan entered a long economic slump.But around 2000, Kitty surprised Sanrio by rebounding in a big way, with Hollywood stars wearing the cat on T-shirts and carrying Hello Kitty bags.“But when you have a boom, you have a bust,” said M

30、r. Shichijo, the professor. “People get sick of it. Now Sanrios in trouble.”Sanrio has tried to keep Hello Kitty up to the times: sensing a move away from Japans love affair with the cute, or “kawaii” aesthetic, it has pushed an edgier look for the cat in the last three years, using as much black as

31、 pink.Still, a sense of crisis is evident at the Tokyo offices of Sanrio, where 30 designers, led by Ms. Yamaguchi, are charged with developing new characters. At periodic product meetings, each designer presents as many as 20 characters for consideration by Ms. Yamaguchi. Of those, perhaps a dozen

32、are chosen for trial sales at a pilot Sanrio store in Tokyo.These days, designers are also urged to make sure their characters work across multiple media a lesson Sanrio learned the hard way with Hello Kitty. Because Kitty had no mouth, it was difficult for the cat to break into television animation

33、, depriving Sanrio of a lucrative source of revenue.When the company created a talking Kitty for a pilot cartoon series, it set off a fury among fans loyal to the cats mouthless look, Ms. Yamaguchi said.And though Sanrio goes to great length to create back stories for its characters Kitty, for example, was born in London and likes to eat cookies that biography is not compelling enough to draw many fans, according to analysts, who cite weak characterization as a drawback in Sanrios product lines.Characters developed by Walt Disney, in contrast, typically m