Hello Kitty has no mouth, no lilting, cutesy voice and no trademark catchphrase.

Yet, speechless as she may be something on her oversized head with requisite pink bow attracts fans on a global level.

One of the world’s most iconic felines is turning 30 this year, after three decades of pink pencil cases, strawberry-scented erasers and literally everything in between. As Hello Kitty hits her stride in adulthood, she continues to corner the market on cutesy-kitsch all the while effortlessly blending trendy design with rich nostalgia.

Hello Kitty’s parent company, Sanrio, Inc., was founded in 1960 in Japan.

Originally marketing small gifts for children and sugary-sweet animated shorts, Hello Kitty was introduced in 1974. Spreading quickly – first to San Francisco, shortly followed by the rest of the world – Hello Kitty is enjoying snowballing success, hitting highs in recent years with increased exposure in America due to stores like Target, Amazon and more offering Sanrio products.

As she reaches her 30th birthday, the party plans are hitting highs as well. Among the year-long celebration events are birthday galas in Los Angeles and New York, a girl-centered surfing competition, a nationwide haiku writing contest and, of course, an abundance of anniversary items for sale. The most outrageous? A 3-centimeter Hello Kitty statue sculpted from platinum and bejeweled with 131 diamonds – at a faint-inducing $28,000.

“Hello Kitty speaks to everyone,” said Kerry Barlow, a political communications graduate student. “She has no political stance, no agenda. She speaks on an international level because she’s so interchangeable. She is easy to identify with because she’s so simplistic.”

After 30 years, she hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. Despite frequent rumors, Hello Kitty is still a single career girl, her iconic image gracing coffeemakers, sandals, make-up, Post-It notepads, cell phones, snowboards and more. A global empire for a silent cat. Meow.