英文摘要 |
Japan emerged as a superpower in the early twentieth century after its wars with China and Russia. The image of Japan as an advanced country in the medical and pharmaceutical industry helped it promote its products in China. In its promotion campaigns in the Chinese newspapers, the focus was on advertising one product: the Human Elixir ("jintan" 仁丹). Jintan was produced by the Morishita pharmacy 森下藥房, which took the opportunity to expand its business in China when that country's demand for medicine was especially high. As a result, Morishita earned more revenue from China than Japan. In the meantime, the success of Jintan aroused the attention of Huang Chujiu 黃楚九, who made a similar product known as Rendan (人丹) in Chinese. Through aggressive advertising and promotion, Rendan successfully challenged the supremacy of Jintan in China. Based on government records, business archives, newspapers, old photos, and advertising pamphlets and leaflets, this article examines how Jintan gained its supremacy in China, and how later Rendan competed with it and finally surpassed it. To support this argument, this paper provides an analysis of trademark and advertisement strategies. I also discuss issues of commercial war, localization of markets, conceptions of foreign products, trademark infringement, and businesses in sales and advertising. |