Mochi Kittos: The Gardena Born Cat Lounge Helping South Bay Cats Find Forever Homes
Mochi Kittos is a cat lounge built to give shelter cats a calmer, more inviting space to find their forever homes, all while serving up a Japanese treat that shares the business’s name. Founder Kristie Fujita, a Gardena native, built the concept around her lifelong passion for the human animal bond.
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A Veterinary Background Rooted in the South Bay
Kristie Fujita was born and raised in Gardena, California, and has had a passion for the human animal bond for as long as she can remember. She went on to study to become a veterinarian at Purdue University and still practices in her spare time today. Along the way, she found she especially enjoyed teaching people about their pets and how to enrich their animals’ lives.
That background led her to notice a gap: cats in shelters, particularly older or less flashy cats, often struggle to get noticed. Understanding the need for a space that could help move cats out of shelters and increase their chances of adoption, Fujita started Mochi Kittos to create an environment where cats can feel less stressed and have a real opportunity to thrive while waiting for the right family to find them.
What Makes Mochi Kittos Different
Mochi Kittos is designed to be a place where people can feel at home while spending time with cats. The lounge creates an enriched environment for its resident cats and gives them the chance to find a forever home in a lower stress setting than a traditional shelter.
Alongside the cats, Mochi Kittos serves mochi, a Japanese dessert made from sweet glutinous rice flour that is sweet, chewy, and pairs well with coffee or tea. Visitors can enjoy the treats while spending time with the cats, or take some home to share with family and friends. Mochi Kittos is not a boarding facility or a play space for personal pets. Its focus stays on the resident cats and their path to adoption.
Cosmo Becomes Yoshi: A Milestone Adoption
One of the most meaningful moments in Mochi Kittos’ short history came with its very first adoption. Cosmo, a domestic shorthair around 4 years old, had spent well over a year in the foster system. He was exactly the kind of cat Fujita hoped Mochi Kittos could help: sweet, lovable, and full of personality, but easy to overlook when scrolling through adoption websites where kittens and unique looking cats tend to draw the most attention.
Less than 6 days after Mochi Kittos opened, Cosmo found his family. They were not looking for the youngest or flashiest cat. They fell for his personality. His new family renamed him Yoshi, and Fujita says hearing how loved he is in his new home made all the long nights and hard work of opening Mochi Kittos feel worth it.
Since then, Mochi Kittos has celebrated more than 15 adoptions, with each one reinforcing why the business exists.
Community and Coming Full Circle
For Fujita, community in the South Bay means home. Raised in the Gardena area, she always planned to come back. It is where she is raising her daughter, now 19 months old, and where she wanted to build something meaningful. Opening Mochi Kittos in the same community that shaped her feels like a full circle moment: growing up there, leaving, coming back, and now creating a space where families, neighbors, and rescue cats can connect.
Her advice for anyone chasing a similar dream is to keep sharing it, even when others do not fully understand it yet. When she first talked about Mochi Kittos, she heard plenty of doubts about how unrealistic the idea sounded. But she has learned that the ideas that sound the most unrealistic are often the ones most worth chasing, since you never know who will believe in your vision or open a door for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Mochi Kittos?
Mochi Kittos is a cat lounge in the South Bay where visitors can spend time with adoptable cats in a low stress environment, while also enjoying mochi, a Japanese rice flour dessert.
Can I adopt a cat from Mochi Kittos?
Yes. All of the cats at Mochi Kittos are available for adoption, and visitors are encouraged to spend time with them to see if one might be the right fit for their family.
Is Mochi Kittos a boarding facility?
No. Mochi Kittos is not a boarding facility or a play space for personal pets. It is focused on housing adoptable cats and helping them find forever homes.
How many cats has Mochi Kittos helped adopt out?
Since opening, Mochi Kittos has celebrated more than 15 adoptions.
Visit Mochi Kittos
Mochi Kittos
South Bay, CA
Website: mochikittos.com
Instagram: @mochikittos
All platforms (YouTube, TikTok, etc.): @mochikittos
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