Distinctive Murals, Wall Signs Define Cincinnati’s Jungle Jim’s

In 1971, Jim Bonaminio established his first produce stand on the corner of Erie and High Sts. in Hamilton, OH, a town 22 miles north of Cincinnati. He set up several more itinerant produce stands, and realized he needed a permanent shop. He bought land in Fairfield, OH, a northern Cincinnati suburb, and opened a 4,200-sq.-ft. produce market, whimsically called Jungle Jim’s, in 1975. His business flourished, and several expansions – and exotic amenities, such as an “animal pond”, imitation palm trees, and a monorail – created a 215,000-sq.-ft. superstore that evolved into a regional attraction because of its international-food offerings and expansive décor.

Since the 1990s, Bonaminio and his management team had searched for a second Jungle Jim’s location where other Queen City residents could find Thai darian fruit, fufu flour from Africa or hard-to-find Latin American cheeses. After having nixed several prospective locations, they settled on a former Biggs’ superstore location in Cincinnati’s Eastgate neighborhood. Although it lacks Fairfield’s storage or events facilities, the Eastgate store’s 230,000-sq.-ft. footprint exceeds its big brother’s shopping space.

Debby Hartinger, Jungle Jim’s marketing director, said signage played a vital role in developing the store’s concept because, in addition to directing and informing customers about Jungle Jim’s wares, it also creates the store’s atmosphere. Although vestiges from the original store’s motif remain – a monorail car astride a few hundred feet of track, and a pair of sculpted gorillas (gorillas are an iconic part of the Jungle Jim brand) that comically preside over the entrance – most of the Eastgate store’s environmental graphics differ from those in Fairfield.

For instance, murals prominently convey the store’s theme: “The ceilings in the Eastgate store are quite high, so we thought murals would make them appear warmer and less imposing,” Hartinger said. “One thing ‘Jungle’ [Bonaminio] really enjoyed about the store was that it provided a way to use his imagination to create the store’s atmosphere from the beginning, rather than through a series of add-ons, as had happened in Fairfield.”

This gallery reveals the store management’s dedication to celebrating its singular presence, and letting its signage cultivate the store’s unmistakable personality.