Istanbul hosts hello kitty

ISTANBUL

This airplane shows the face of Hello Kitty, Japan’s popular animation figure. REUTERS photo

The Japanese company, Sanrio, plans to open a 3,000 square-meter Hello Kitty World store in Istanbul with a $15 million investment, according to a company press release.

Hello Kitty World sells a large range of products including dolls, stickers, greeting cards, clothes, accessories, stationary, purses and home appliances based on a cartoon figure created in Japan in the 1970’s.

The firm’s annual turnover is about $6 billion, the press release said. The investment decision is expected to be revealed later in this month.