VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR

THE HELLO KITTY^® & FRIENDS COLORING BOOK

Latest Addition To The Extensive Sanrio Catalog Debuts Fall 2017, Delivering Hours Of Coloring Fun For Fans Of All Ages!

San Francisco, CA, April 24, 2017 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), a premier company in the fields of publishing, animation distribution, and global entertainment licensing, proudly expands its partnership with Sanrio Inc. and its HELLO KITTY roster with the acquisition of the publishing rights for THE HELLO KITTY & FRIENDS COLORING BOOK.

Scheduled for print release in October 2017, THE HELLO KITTY & FRIENDS COLORING BOOK will feature more than 40 original line art illustrations depicting Hello Kitty, My Melody, Keroppi, Badtz-Maru, Chococat and more Sanrio characters. Adults and children will have hours of fun bringing these illustrations to life in full color.

“Hello Kitty and the Sanrio characters are universally beloved brands that enjoy widespread popularity,” says Leyla Aker, Senior Vice President, Publishing for VIZ Media.  “Filled with beautiful, detailed art, we’re incredibly excited to share this new coloring book with Sanrio fans of all ages.”

Hello Kitty is a global pop icon, loved by fans of all ages. Her popularity worldwide is proven by more than 13 million followers on her Facebook page alone. 

VIZ Media’s roster of HELLO KITTY titles also features full-color original graphic novels that include HELLO KITTY: HERE WE GO!, HELLO KITTY: DELICIOUS!, HELLO KITTY: SURPRISE!, HELLO KITTY: JUST IMAGINE…, HELLO KITTY: WORK OF ART,  HELLO KITTY: IT’S ABOUT TIME and HELLO KITTY: FASHION MUSIC WONDERLAND as well as the HELLO KITTY, HELLO 40 official full-color celebratory anthology.

For additional information on THE HELLO KITTY & FRIENDS COLORING BOOK and other HELLO KITTY titles distributed and published by VIZ Media, please visit VIZ.com.

About Sanrio^®    

Sanrio is the global lifestyle brand best known for pop icon Hello Kitty^®, who celebrated her 40^th Anniversary in 2014.    Home to many endearing characters including Chococat^® My Melody^®, Badtz-Maru^® and Keroppi^®, Sanrio was founded on the ‘small gift, big smile^®’ philosophy – that a small gift can bring happiness and friendship to people of all ages. Since 1960, this philosophy has served as the inspiration for the broad spectrum of unique products and experiences.  Today, more than 50,000 Hello Kitty-branded items are available in over 130 countries and upwards of 15,000 U.S. retail locations including department, specialty, national chain stores and Sanrio boutique stores.

About VIZ Media, LLC

Established in 1986, VIZ Media is the premier company in the fields of publishing, animation distribution, and global entertainment licensing. Along with its popular digital magazine WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, DRAGON BALL, SAILOR MOON, and POKÉMON, VIZ Media offers an extensive library of titles and original content in a wide variety of book and video formats, as well as through official licensed merchandise. Owned by three of Japan's largest publishing and entertainment companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media is dedicated to bringing the best titles for English-speaking audiences worldwide.

Learn more about VIZ Media and its properties at VIZ.com.