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15 March 1979

China's first foreign ad after Reform and Opening-up started

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Reform and Opening up

Published : 2025-03-15

On March 15, 1979, China's first foreign business advertisement after the Reform and Opening-up was released.

At 6:51 pm that day, Shanghai Television broadcasted a one-minute watch commercial during a television programme, featuring the globally renowned Swiss brand "RADO". This advertisement contained only an English explanation, accompanied by Chinese subtitles.

On the same day, the Shanghai Wen Wei Po published a hand-drawn full-page advertisement for the "RADO" watch, with the headline "RADO - a modern watch".

At that time, China's Reform and Opening-up had just begun. RADO's action was intended to expand international market and respond to the impact from Japanese electronic and quartz watch technology.

At the same time, it was an assessment of the potential of the Chinese market and the policies of the Reform and Opening-up. While other famous Swiss watch companies were still observing and waiting, RADO took real action to seize the market share.

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