Sanrio Wholesale: Bringing Kawaii Commerce to Global Markets

Introduction

The Japanese company Sanrio, who created Hello Kitty and more than 400 other characters, has been able to build an empire through the influence of the kawaii (cute) culture. Sanrio wholesale distribution provides a gateway to lucrative merchandising to those retailers who seek to exploit this lasting popularity. The corporate culture of the company, nakayoku (getting along together), is shared with its business partners, and this has given a chance to licensed retailers to make the world a happier place by smiling at its consumers. 

The Sanrio Wholesale Ecosystem

Different platforms and suppliers can meet the needs of retailers that want to purchase in large quantities. With a minimum order of just 250 dollars and no minimum on most products, AsianBeautyWholesale.com is accessible to smaller businesses. Larger B2B sites such as Alibaba.com contain many manufacturers and trading enterprises in China dealing with Sanrio products, and can customize and buy in large quantities.

Key Product Categories in Sanrio Wholesale

This company extended its business activities beyond stationeries into various lifestyle lines:

• Kitchen and Dining: Kitchenware, bento lunch boxes, lunch bags and water bottles and tableware with popular characters.
• Plush Toys: Detailed embroidered stuffed animals of Hello Kitty, My Melody, Cinnamoroll and other characters.
• Stationery and Accessories: School supplies, journals and fashion accessories covered with kawaii designs.
• Clothing: Casual clothes such as t-shirts and specialty kigurumi costumes.

Manufacturing and Sourcing Considerations

China is the leader in the manufacturing scene of Sanrio products, and industrial clusters specialized in that product line provide unique benefits:

• Guangdong Province (Shenzhen, Dongguan): It is the home of electronic-built products and technological accessories.
• Zhejiang Province (Yiwu): It specializes in small goods such as keychains, jewelry and accessories.
• Jiangsu Province: Knowledge in the field of plush toys and products made of textiles.

These areas enjoy the advantage of well developed supply channels, low prices through economies of scale and long experience in the manufacture of licensed character products. 

Challenges and Best Practices for Wholesale Buyers

In order to enter the Sanrio wholesale business, it has to be planned:

• Licensing Check: It is important to ensure that the supplier is a licensed distributor to avoid counterfeit products. Sanrio is a vigilant protector of its intellectual property.
• Order quantities: Study minimum order requirements (MOQs). Not every distributor is a low MOQ (e.g. $250) distributor, some do accept large volume.
• Product Choice: Stock a variety of evergreen bestsellers (including Hello Kitty core products) and popular characters such that the product appeal is as universal to all demographic groups as possible.

Conclusion

There is a huge potential in retailing the Sanrio wholesale world that can tap into a global successful brand, with years of cultural popularity. Leveraging the continued popularity of kawaii could be achieved successfully with licensed distributors, an understanding of product diversities, and ethical sourcing practices. As Sanrio continues to create new characters and to spin off into new products, such as digital games and theme parks, the wholesale landscape is bound to change and retailers have new possibilities to bring a piece of this happy universe to consumers on the international market.