(born December 7, 1927) is a Japanese entrepreneur. Formerly a civil servant, he is the founder and (until 2020) president of
Sanrio
is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and produces products focusing on the ''kawaii'' ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and accessories which are sold ...
, a merchandise company known for
its characters, including
Hello Kitty
, also known by her full name , is a fictional Character (arts), character created by Yuko Shimizu, currently designed by Yuko Yamaguchi, and owned by the Japanese company Sanrio. Sanrio depicts Hello Kitty as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphi ...
.
Biography
Early life
Shintaro Tsuji was born in
Kofu,
Yamanashi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Yamanashi Prefecture has a population of 817,192 (1 January 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,465 km2 (1,724 sq mi). Yamanashi Prefecture borders Saitama Prefecture to the no ...
, to a manageress of three ''ryokan''. He was a student of a kindergarten affiliated with the
Toyo Eiwa Jogakuin
is a private girls academy founded on November 6, 1884, in Azabu, Minato, Tokyo by Martha J. Cartmell, a Methodist missionary from Canada.SeHistory of Tōyō Eiwa Jogakuin, page 1. Accessed June 15, 2006] Toyo Eiwa Women's University, establishe ...
.
As part of a wealthy family belonging to the Saegusa clan, Tsuji, as their first child, lived a life of luxury, yet he was secluded. When his mother died of
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...
,
Tsuji was under the care of his abusive aunt. From 1945 to 1947, Tsuji studied
chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...
at Kiryu Technical College (now a part of
Gunma University
, abbreviated to , is a national university in Japan. The main campus is located in Aramaki-machi, Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture.
History
Gunma University was established in 1949 by integrating the national colleges in Gunma Prefecture: , , ...
); at that time, he also practiced manufacturing, and he would later take advantage of the post-World War II shorta