Mama Monkey’s is a sauce brand that blends Cantonese flavors with classic American condiments.

DISCIPLINES

Illustration
Storytelling
Packaging Design

TIMELINE

Winter 2026
7 weeks

TEAM

Solo Project

ROLE

Graphic Designer
Illustrator

THE CHALLENGE

Ketchup is one of the world's most recognizable condiments, yet few people know its origins lie in Southern China. How do you tell that overlooked story while creating a brand that feels both familiar and unexpected?

REIMAGINING A CLASSIC

Before ketchup became a household staple, it began as ke-tsiap, a fermented fish sauce from Southern China.

Inspired by my Cantonese heritage, I reimagined the condiment through a visual identity that blends the familiarity of Heinz with my mom's homemade cooking. Mama Monkey's references my Chinese zodiac, celebrating cultural exchange through a familiar classic.

Gathered inspiration and visual references for illustration styles, cultural patterns and motifs, color palettes, bottle shapes, and type implementation. Sketched initial concepts.

IDEATION
A collage of Asian-inspired and vintage food packaging, labels, and artwork. Includes traditional and modern designs, with items like sake bottles, soy sauce, and ketchup, as well as decorative boxes, tins, and packaging with Asian motifs.

3 STRATEGIES

3. Textured Paper

Use cream linen stock for dimensionality and to create a tactile experience for the consumer.

1. Location

Lean into recognizable Chinese cultural motifs to convey the heritage component that is defining to this project.

2. Mascot

Create a single-color mascot to show the personality of the brand and an image that they can easily recognize and connect to.

PROCESS

TAKEAWAYS

A taste of tradition

Red symbolizes prosperity and good fortune. The cream linen paper gives a tactile warmth that contrasts with the richness of the red.

For the type, I selected serif typefaces to convey establishment. The chosen glyphs mimic the monkeys' movement and create balance between illustration and logotype.

The photography explores ketchup’s transformation from a simple ingredient into a globally recognized staple.

Color palette with shades named Lucky Red, Black, Rice Milk, Toasted Cream, and their hex codes, alongside font samples for Matrix II OT and Bookmania, showing uppercase, lowercase, and number characters. 
COLOR & TYPE
Packaging label for Mama Monkey's Cantonese Ketchup, organic Chinese tomato condiment. Features a monkey riding a lion illustration, red decorative borders, and text describing product details, ingredients, and nutrition facts. 
BRAND PHOTOGRAPHY
A bottle of Mama Monkey Cantonese ketchup standing next to three fresh tomatoes with water droplets on their surface.
A hand holding a Molson Canadian beer bottle at an angle with some beer spilling out.
A bottle of Mama Monkey's Cantonese Ketchup with a white cap, standing upright on a white surface against a plain background.
Bottle of ketchup with a white cap on a plain light background.
A bottle of Asian sauce with a red label featuring text about Cantonese cuisine, nutrition facts, and ingredients.
A glass bottle of ketchup with a white cap placed on a plain white surface against a light gray background.

For next time…

I loved getting the opportunity to showcase my culture and background through this project. One of the main challenges was this Chinese pagoda label shape, especially adhering it to the bottle, but it also turned out to be a fun constraint to work with. I would love to create many more bottle labels this summer when I have a bit of spare time.

SORTR
BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE
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