You see it every time you shop, but this baby has a legacy over a century old, spanning across oceans
You see it every time you shop, but this baby has a legacy over a century old and spanning across oceans to deliver you a delectable dollop of creamy mayonnaise.
The story began in 1909 when American illustrator Rose O'Niell developed an adorable character named Kewpies that, in her own words, was "a sort of little round fairy whose one idea is to teach people to be merry and kind at the same time."
At first they were simply drawings, making their debut in the magazine Ladies Home Journal. O'Niell then began to make them available to cut out so people could play with the dolls, called Kewpie Kutouts.
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You see these adorable babies every time you shop. Woolworths
Kewpies – named after Cupid – soared to popularity in the 1910s, with the cutouts then turning into real dolls made of bisque via a factory in Germany in 1912.
They were completely naked with proud potbellies and rosy cheeks, as well as a cowlick of blonde hair and their arms joined coyly behind their backs.
The collectible dolls drove the character's popularity even further and all around the world, with the cherub appearing on household items and other memorabilia such as dishware, rattles, Poetry collections, stationery, and even food items such as Jell-O.
Kewpies featured in a Jell-O advertisement from 1915. De Agostini via Getty Images
O'Neill herself used them to promote the women's suffrage movement, accompanying the delightful drawings with feminist slogans.
One product it continues to be seen on today is on Kewpie mayo.
How did an American figurine become the namesake of a Japanese product, you ask? It's actually quite simple.
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In the 1910s, a Japanese man by the name of Toichiro Nakashima stayed in the United States and the United Kingdom for three years while working as an intern for the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce.
His travels exposed him to many Western delights, such as mayonnaise and the aforementioned Kewpie dolls.
The condiment intrigued Nakashima, being included in a wide variety of dishes like sandwiches and potato salad, but also containing nutrients in an easily accessible way.
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This logo has a legacy spanning 100 year and across seas. Bloomberg via Getty Images
But he knew he needed to adjust the taste to a Japanese palette, and so he decided to use only egg yolks instead of the whole egg to add a kick of umami to the tasty topping.
Something else Nakashima was clued into was the societal shift in Japan towards Western trends, especially after the Tokyo-Yokohama area was rebuilt following the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923.
Utilising the popularity of the iconic American doll to give his American-inspired condiment a profile boost, he launched it in 1925.
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Kewpie mayo was an instant hit, becoming the most popular mayonnaise in Japan and recognisable worldwide due to its adorable mascot. The sauce is now being sold in 79 countries worldwide, including Australia.
One hundred years on and across distant lands, the Kewpie continues to smile at us as we shop in our local supermarkets and open our fridges for our mayo fix.
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