100 Malaysians, 100 Milestones – LSA100 this year spotlights the creative faces behind the Chuck’s and Motherchuckers’ combined ‘universe’, Mandy Gioh and Jason Alexander Pang, who have been doing their part to take the beauty and lifestyle brand to new and bigger heights.
Sometimes a brand isn’t just a brand. That might sound redundant, and especially in this age of hyperconsumerism and ‘self-care spending’ it becomes difficult to pinpoint what’s actually meaningful and memorable in the slog. But what I mean is that sometimes a brand could be a person — a really cool person. This is what sets Chuck’s apart in the industry, and why it still stands as the ‘It Brand’ today. Chuck’s branding is always intentional. There’s always a story to tell. The lore goes on, and it is never-ending, and all that jazz. But who writes the stories?
“What happens is we sit everyone down and we create a zeitgeist, or a persona,” Jason Alexander Pang, the mind behind the Motherchuckers brand, breaks it down. “So it’s, like, to a T. Where does this person go? What does she wear? What’s the age group, where does she work, how’s the attitude?”
“And when it comes to beauty, you have to understand there’s also a lot of competitors out there, like, there’s a lot of sheet masks,” Mandy Gioh, who helms the creative direction for Chuck’s, says with a laugh. “So, besides highlighting how good the product is, it’s very important for us to also sell the messaging for Chuck’s.”
To put it simply, Chuck’s knows what it’s doing. It’s one thing to be wacky and out of the ordinary; it’s another thing altogether to make it work and resonate with your audience and keep them wanting more. Each and every one of the campaigns that Chuck’s has produced garnered significant attention, so much that it has become expected that the brand would always come out with something extremely cool.
Take Chuck’s Kmart campaign in September — a collaboration with Samsung, reimagined into a K-drama scene. Or Chuck’s Miss Prime Time campaign the month before, taking inspiration from beauty queens past and highlighting women’s beauty of all ages. And the most recent Casa Motherchuckers at Apartment 103, offering customisation in a cosy, intimate setting.
When Jane Lau first launched Chuck’s in 2009, it became known for its skin-loving facial masks before expanding into a full skincare line. In 2020 a sister line was introduced — Motherchuckers, which quickly grew popular for its comfy jumpers and clothing sets. Less than two years later, the brand went on to become the first Malaysian brand to collaborate with the Italian shoe brand Superga (also widely recognised as Kate Middleton’s favourite). Then Pretty Motherchuckers entered the picture earlier this year, giving the brand a “younger, more rebellious” streak. Most recently, of course, is Chuck’s Beauty: from facial masks, to skincare, and now a deep dive straight into cosmetics. And all throughout this journey, Brand Director Mandy Gioh and Production Lead Jason Alexander Pang get the gears running.
2024 has been quite a busy and eventful year for Chuck’s. What are some highlight moments of the year so far for you both?
Mandy Gioh (M): I think, definitely from my end, launching beauty for Chuck’s. I think that is something that’s quite a milestone for Chuck’s end, because we’ve been doing beauty for, like, the past four years. So it was really nice to kind of, like, have an extension of Chuck’s for everyone to experience, which is Chuck’s Beauty as well.
Jason Alexander Pang (J): I think from my side, it would be the fact that we have established further relationships with our partners that we’ve worked with together. I think internally, we’ve definitely built a stronger team, that’s number one. Number two is that I think this is the year we can definitely see the results of us incubating the relationships with our brands, the media, and also collaborators that we’ve worked with. Our sponsors, and stuff like that, and to actually push through bigger and better events.
M: Yeah, I think the one that we did, the Casa Motherchuckers one, is quite big. Just like what Jason said, enhancing and also developing better relationships with our partners, and seeing how the brand kind of reflects on that as well.
So, Chuck’s has also ventured into makeup recently with Chuck’s Beauty. Tell us a little bit about that.
M: I think it’s a very natural route to kind of roll in. And I think it’s also because how we came up with it is definitely drawing inspiration from our audience and also ourselves. Because me and Jane, when it comes to like beauty stuff, we are always quite simple and quite easygoing. We’re just enhancing, you know, our ‘everyday’ stuff. So, yeah, I would say it’s just a very natural route to come about with that and to grow the beauty line. It’s also quite an interesting kind of process, because it took us, like, a year to develop and to research, and then to test. It was just really nice to see the final product.
Let’s talk about Pretty Motherchuckers drop that recently launched this month. What was the intent and inspiration behind creating them, and what do you hope it might achieve with the customers?
J: So, Pretty Motherchuckers is basically an extension of, like, all the brands combined. I think it was just a conversation from a business point of view. Me, Jane and Mandy, we sat down and discussed — we definitely do cater to the Motherchuckers line, and that covers all genders and obviously most age groups. But definitely from a business point of view there is definitely also a demand for… I wouldn’t say ‘refined’, but there’s the rebellious side of how people are dressing these days as well. So we also want to cover that, ‘cause that is also part of our own personal DNA. That’s what we’re trying to reflect. So we all sat down and were like, “Hey, is that something we want to look into?” ‘Cause obviously for Motherchuckers, we have a very big fan base here in Malaysia, and in Singapore. So getting into Pretty [Motherchuckers] is basically like our ‘trial’ era, our ‘try and run’ to see if we can push the brand DNA overseas, to another vessel. I think other than the name, like Motherchuckers aside, I think one is very much ‘different’ from the other in terms of what it is. So, imagine day and night. One is more casual. And Pretty is for, like, night out kind of moment.
Branding-wise we do have competitors from a global standpoint. But I think for Malaysia, positioning-wise we’ll try our best to keep it, you know, still within the comfort zone of the existing Motherchuckers group. And we’ll see how we sort of go from there. So I think after that first drop, we realised that when it comes to Pretty, we have to trust the ‘new gen’, the younger people. I guess different ‘eyeballs’ and different brains to sort of help push the brand further. Hence we did the ‘30 Days of Pretty’ drop, it was like, “Okay, let’s just try it and see if it works.” So for Pretty, we’re still at a very experimental stage, but we definitely have a pretty solid plan for it.
What do you kind of look at, like, in terms of inspiration and things like that for the design — when you were coming up with the idea of Pretty Motherchuckers? Especially since you said the brand is heading towards a more New Gen style, right?
J: So, for all the brands… I think for Motherchuckers we did this as well, like three or four years ago, and we’ve definitely refreshed it. What happens is we sit everyone down and we create a zeitgeist, or a persona. So it’s, like, to a T. Where does this person go? What does she wear? What’s the age group, where does she work, how’s the attitude? And from there, we start building customer intelligence (CI) and brand directions, of what we wanna portray. We’ll find suitable people to come in and help realise the vision. How we tap into the clothing realm when it comes to that. I think for Motherchuckers, it gets updated regularly.
Every time we have a new collection launch, the ‘core’ definitely comes from us, but we do try to engage or outsource and work with people that we feel are suitable for this specific project. When it comes to building CI for every single project, we try to keep it quite individual. So we keep the mix quite fresh all the time. Because I think at the end of the day, it’s very important to always hear feedback from a third person’s perspective. Because in a sense, they are our consumers, so indirectly they will also tell you what works for us, and what doesn’t. That’s how we see it.
The creative direction for Chuck’s feels very unique, like the ‘world-building’ you have for Chuck’s. Especially for your campaigns, like the Chuck’s Kmart event and the ‘Miss Prime’ ad. The events you do are so well-curated and well-thought-out. There’s a lot of lore, and the storytelling is great. What is the approach that you take when it comes to creative campaigns?
J: When I look at them, I see that they don’t… okay, I don’t wanna make it sound ‘kiddish’ but they don’t take themselves that seriously. You know what I mean? I think when they approach it, they would obviously ask from within. They have a very creative bunch of girls that work under Chuck’s. So definitely they have their own little twists to things. It might be very ‘out of this world’ and not very ‘commercial’ but they try to make it work. And I think it’s the way Jane works as well, ‘cause obviously she’s obviously very in touch with the commercial work. She knows what already has a ‘been there, done that’ kind of vibe, so she’s always after that kind of thing, like what you said, the ‘lore’. She’s after something that’s not quite ‘trendy’ but then it’s still sort of on trend. In a sense, it works for them because I think the secret is they just don’t take themselves seriously when it comes to brainstorming.
M: (laughs) What I can add on top of what Jason mentioned, when it comes to beauty, we have to understand there’s also a lot of competitors out there. Like, there’s a lot of sheet masks. (laughs) So, besides highlighting how good the product is, it’s very important for us to also sell the messaging for Chuck’s. You know, like how we name most of our Chuck’s products. Our Thank You cleanser, Self Love For All cream, Chuck It and Glow On masks. I think all this key messaging is also really, really important. Just so we create a better relationship with the product and also with someone who is buying it, they can have that relatability to it.
So I think when it comes to Prime Time, we were very well aware that even down to the packaging, it looks like a trophy. It looks like a trophy for yourself and also for anyone that you are giving it to. That’s something that we wanted to kind of highlight, to have a play on the whole ‘beauty pageant’ idea and celebrating skin, celebrating women, and everyone else in their age group. And yeah, that was very fun.
And when it comes to the Samsung campaign — ‘cause it’s our second time working with Samsung — me and Jane, we did want to highlight the whole experience. Like, just letting people experience the store, giving a new light and also new ‘skin’ to store. And using language as a way to interact with everyone. It was a very fun project for us to work on as well. We’re just happy that everyone enjoyed that.
It feels like Chuck’s has never had a ‘down’ period, it’s always been the ‘it brand’ How do you maintain that status, whether working with influencers or the like?
M: I would say it’s definitely a mix of things. Because I do feel that when it comes to Chuck’s, you know, since we have also Motherchuckers and also Pretty… they’re all under our ‘family’. So, you know, when everyone is doing anything, we are always there to support each other. And I would say staying relevant is definitely something that we always try our best to keep up with.
J: I think for me, the one thing I can point out is — and I think I only realised this a couple of years in — the importance in identifying the people.
M: And the customers.
J: The customers, yes, one. Also the people you work with. It doesn’t have to be an influencer, because I think I do realise that word of mouth still works in this day and age. Okay, of course the influencer, if it’s down to hair and makeup, they are kind of indirectly your brand ambassadors in a way. I guess for a lot of brands it’s like, “Okay, let’s just throw out a net and let’s just see who we can get.”
I think that would work once or twice. But as the years go by, you can lose that genuineness because if that person is really into your product, you’ll really see that. It’s not like buying a ‘posting’. I could just say, “Hey, post this.” And I think once or twice, it will hit. But then in the long run, as a brand I think you really have to identify the girl or the guy that you are trying to ‘push’ as the face. But indirectly. Because I think harsh marketing doesn’t really work in this day and age. So it’s a lot of factors like what Mandy said, but also the genuinity of the people that you work with is the number one priority for us as well, across the board.
Before the launch of a new product, what is the general thought process?
M: If it sells.
J: If it sells.
M: (laughs) I think that’s always the thing, that’s the hard truth. I could also say creative-wise, we definitely need to make sure that people get the messaging and also make sure that they get the campaign and everything. But there’s also another side of us, you know, the hats that we need to wear to make sure that the product is working really well.
J: The messaging needs to be digestible for our customers. We might come up with very creative campaigns and stuff, but when it comes to… I wouldn’t use the word ‘avant garde’ but more like high-end, not your normal mass-produced stuff. We would always have this debate of like, “Okay, is this too, too far ahead in time?” I get it, we have to set trends, but we still need the consumers to absorb the information now. So it’s always this debate of, “Are we bringing this too far? Is this person not suitable for this campaign because we feel that the face is too ‘high-end’? Do we need someone that’s a little bit more ‘welcoming’?” It’s always this back-and-forth.
We try our best to just go as far as we can. But at the end of the day, we’ll sit down and think that we need this to communicate. If it’s not gonna communicate to the staff or the people that we see as customers, like, if they don’t get it, then it’s not gonna work. Because they represent the consumers. If it’s not it, it’s just not it. So I think we just have to manage that, and to factor that in. It’s not just about how we want it, it’s also how the customers receive it. Because if the numbers don’t hit… yeah.
What would you say is the biggest challenge so far, with running Chuck’s?
J: Staying relevant.
M: Yeah, I think staying relevant.
J: I would say we try. But it’s a very fine line of trying to not… okay, I don’t wanna say ‘don’t be a sellout’ because at the end of the day you still have to sell a product. But I guess the challenge is to do it in a very natural way. It is pretty challenging to subconsciously tell your consumer to spend, if I’m being very straightforward. ‘Cause we already know, in this day and age of social media, with everything that is put out, people will pick things up very quickly. If it’s like a hard sell, everyone can tell. So I think the challenge is, you have to work backwards and say, ‘Okay, how do I subconsciously tell the consumer that this is a product that you need in your wardrobe?’ That’s a constant challenge that we face, I guess. For all products across the board.
Almost all brands are very reliant on social media and the Internet now for growth. How do you feel about ‘growing with the Internet’ through your business?
J: I mean, don’t blame the players playing the game. That’s how I see it. Because I think you just have to accept the fact that this is a part of building a business in 2024. I think it’s fair to say that as brand owners or as people that work in fashion or beauty today, you have to already tell yourself that it’s not really a choice. You kind of just have to go with it. Try to like it in the process, but it’s just part of your lifestyle.
I think we also consume research and everything from social media, so I assume that it wouldn’t be a problem. Don’t treat it as something that’s ‘bad’, I would say. Just try your best to use it as a tool for your business. Definitely the perks of it is you definitely get things out there way faster. That is the pro. But the con is obviously there’s a lot of housekeeping that you have to do before you put anything out. Whether it’s copywriting, whether it’s imagery. Because I think we are still a very image-facing industry and it’s very much personality-driven. We already knew what we signed up for, so we have to narrate ourselves in a way that, you know, we have to be comfortable with. It’s how it is.
Just to wrap up, what do you foresee for the brand in the next year?
J: I’d say from the Motherchuckers’ side, we definitely have a couple of… I wouldn’t say ‘big projects’ but kind of a big-scale one coming up towards the end of the year. So, we’re kind of figuring something out with our collaborators. But I think moving forward into 2025, we’ve discussed that we want to further refine the brand through what we’ve already been doing. And maybe expand it a little bit to the Southeast Asian region.
M: Yeah. And I think for Chuck’s, definitely I would hope to see the brand more… I mean, I think we still want to kind of focus on Malaysia because there’s a lot more opportunities, you know. But I think it’s also really nice to see the brand go, like, out of Malaysia as well. I think this is something that me and Jane, we’ve talked about and it’s in our pipeline, in terms of how we’re gonna build and really grow Chuck’s.
