According to the country’s commerce ministry, this list now extends to 1,455 firms. Research for this third wave of newcomers, of which there were 382 in total, began in February of 2023, according to state-owned news outletXinhua. First assembled in 2006, a second version of the list was put together in 2011.

The idea is to promote and develop said “old-name businesses and boost consumption of China-chic products”, ministry spokesperson He Yadong told reporters in February.

Plans include harnessing big data to strengthen individual operations, he continued, creating “a one-stop experience space for time-honoured brands and traditional Chinese culture”, plus special merchandise.

Shanghai Leather was first established in its namesake city in 1933. Jihua 3539 Shoemaking, meanwhile, was founded in Chongqing, then part of Sichuan province, in 1912.