Rado, a breif history.
Rado is pronounced (Raa-doh)
Rado was founded in 1917 and was initially named Schlup Co, it was founded by three brothers, Fritz, Ernst and Werner Schlup. They started the company and it was initially run from their parents house. Although Rado had humble beginnings by the time World War 2 ended they were one of the largest producers of watch movements in the world.
The name Rado was born in the 1950’s and by 1957 the iconic Golden horse collection had been released. This started a long line of ranges including the Green horse and Purple horse releases
In 1962 Rado released one of its most iconic watch models, the DiaStar. The release was in response to customer demand and it was marketed as ‘the world’s first scratch proof watch’. Using hard metals and sapphire crystal Rado were able to achieve the idea and develop what the consumers wanted, a comfortable and durable watch with a unique and stylish look. This new look and design was way beyond anything any other watch manufacturer had produced before. Rado released the first gold coloured DiaStar in 1972. Today’s DiaStar models look very different but pay homage to their predecessors.
In 1986 Rado released what is probably the most recognised watch in the range, the Integral. The Integral arrived with a bang and with the Rado signature look (glass covering the full case and dark ceramic) this can be recognised on anyone’s wrist when it is worn. Using a ceramic the watch was resistant to scratches and very comfortable. Rado became well known for using ceramic in their watches and the material is still widely used in today’s models.
The 90’s saw the rise of the high tech ceramic and it was a great success. Rado would invest in research into the ceramic material and they created their high tech ceramic to coincide with the launch of the ‘Ceramica’ range, a completely integrated case and bracelet made with the sapphire crystal and new high tech ceramic case and bracelet. In 1993 Rado released a watch made of Cermet, a titanium based ceramic combined with metal. Then in 1998 the Ceramica watch was the chosen to feature Rado’s newest material, the pioneering plasma high tech ceramic, this gave a metallic shine without the use of any metal. To this day Rado invest heavily in the research of brand new ceramic technologies.
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