Rado

Rado traces its origins to 1917 when brothers Fritz, Ernst, and Werner Schlup converted their parents' home in Lengnau, Switzerland into a watch factory named Schlup & Co. The company initially focused on movement manufacturing, becoming an important supplier during World War II. In 1957, the company launched the Rado brand (named after the Esperanto word for 'wheel') with the Golden Horse, one of the first antimagnetic wristwatches. The pivotal year 1962 saw two groundbreaking releases: the DiaStar 1, marketed as 'the world's first scratch-proof watch' featuring a tungsten carbide hardmetal case and sapphire crystal, and the Captain Cook dive watch. Decades of materials research followed, leading to Rado's signature achievement in 1986: high-tech ceramic. That same year, Rado joined the Swatch Group, gaining resources to further its innovations. The 1990 Ceramica became the first watch with both case and bracelet in ceramic. Subsequent innovations include plasma high-tech ceramic (1998), Ceramos ceramic-metal composite (2011), and partnerships with design institutions like the Le Corbusier Foundation. The Captain Cook line was revived in 2017 to great success, merging vintage aesthetics with modern materials technology.