The Power of Pink, Hello Kitty Hotels

A Hello Kitty themed restaurant, which opened in Beijing last month has charmed hundreds of Beijingers, reigniting the craze for the pink Japanese cartoon character. To begin with, the restaurant received full booking for the Christmas and New Year holiday.

Although the manager of the restaurant claims it is the world's first and only Hello Kitty themed restaurant, there are a number of hotels featuring Hello Kitty decorations and services around the world.

A boutique hotel in the star-spangled area of Beverly Hills in California, United States, offers a suite with Hello Kitty patterned bedding and furniture. What's more, customers in the suite are entitled to use a line of cosmetics under the same Hello Kitty brand.

The Hello Kitty suite is only one of the hotel's 43 guest rooms all of which are designed on one particular theme.

Taiwan also has a Hello Kitty hotel, only theirs is far more lavish. The two story hotel building is painted pink with part of its fa?ade showing a sketch of the famous cat.

It is located in Xinzhu county, about one hour's drive from Taipei. Business at the hotel has been so good since it opened in July, 2008, that you now have to book three months in advance. But few complain about the long wait when they hear that a pink luxurious limousine will pick customers up and take them to the hotel.

These kinds of hotels are also a big hit in Hello Kitty's home country of Japan. The fictional image first appeared on a coin purse produced by Japanese company Sanrio. The designer is Yuko Shimizu. It is portrayed as a female Japanese Bobtail cat with a red bow. Since then, the trademark has spread globally with an extensive range of products.