Lao zihao

A Lao Zihao in Houhai.

Old Trademark (Chinese: 老字號 refers to a trade name (generally three characters in length) for extant Chinese shops of historical prominence. While not indicated by the name, Lao zihao is usually used for those shops originating in the Beijing area after the capital was relocated in the Ming Dynasty. Those shops with origins from other regions of China are classified as 中华老字号 (Old Chinese Trademarks). Many of the shops have a history of well over 400 years, and in modern times have begun to expand via mass commercialization of their staple products.

Notable Beijing Zihao's

全聚德 -- Beijing Roast Duck restaurant
东来顺 -- hotpot restaurant
都一处—restaurant famous for its shaomai
便宜坊—another competing roast duck restaurant
狗不理 -- baozi restaurant(invented in Tianjin,another city near Beijing)
馄饨侯 -- wonton (hundun) restaurant
六必居—sells various preserved vegetables and sauces
荣宝斋—sells various works of art (notably wallscrolls)
同仁堂—supplier of medicinal herbs used in Traditional Chinese Medicine
张一元—teahouse
瑞蚨祥—cloth and qipao's (Traditional Chinese Clothes)
内联升—old Chinese cloth shoes
盛锡福—hats

See also

• Economy of China
• Economic history of China (Pre-1911)
• Economic history of China (1912–1949)