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Sanrio to Open Museum in Yamanashi Pref. Dedicated to Founder, Exhibits Include Hello Kitty, Other Characters

©2025 SANRIO CO., LTD.
An artist rendering shows the interior of the new museum Sanrio Co. plans to open in Yamanashi Prefecture, which will exhibit the company’s characters and items related to its founder, Shintaro Tsuji.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

2:00 JST, December 12, 2025

Sanrio Co. will open a museum about its history as well as its founder and honorary chairman Shintaro Tsuji, 98, next April in Kai, Yamanashi Prefecture, the company announced Wednesday.

Materials related to Hello Kitty and other popular characters created by the company will be exhibited at the museum, which will also house a gift shop. The company aims to make a facility where Sanrio fans can get together and have fun.

This is the first time for the company to open a permanent museum. It will be called Yamanashi Ichigo no Osama Museum: Sanrio Sogyosha Tsuji Shintaro Kinenkan, which can be translated into English as “Yamanashi Strawberry King Museum honoring Sanrio founder Shintaro Tsuji.”

Visitors will need to make reservations in advance. Booking methods and entrance fees have not been finalized yet.

Exhibits inside the museum will include materials chronologically showing Sanrio’s history from its early days, such as past editions of the company’s monthly magazine Gekkan Ichigo Shimbun (The Strawberry News) and related merchandise. Tsuji was born in Kofu in 1927 and founded Sanrio in 1960. The museum will showcase a timeline of Tsuji’s life as well as exhibitions of his office and personal belongings.