The Hong Kong Dispensary, (as A.S. Watson was then known) opens its doors in Hong Kong and starts providing medical services to the local people.

Alexander Skirving Watson, a British pharmacist, joins the company as Manager and becomes part-owner of The Hong Kong Dispensary – his name, and ours, would soon become famous.

The Hong Kong Dispensary begins trading under a new name, A.S. Watson Company – and the foundations of an international health and beauty retail group were laid. We are also appointed as the chemist of the Governor of Hong Kong and the Duke of Edinburgh.

A.S. Watson expands its operations by opening retail stores called ‘Watsons the Chemist’, giving customers more opportunities to buy more health-related products, every day.

A.S. Watson celebrates its centenary, just months before the Japanese attack on Hong Kong on 13 December.

A.S. Watson becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa Limited (forerunner of CK Hutchison Holdings), with a total of 75 retail outlets.

Watsons the Chemist expands internationally into Taiwan, Macau and Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand.

Watsons ‘Your Personal Store’ opens its first ‘third generation’ store at Pacific Place, Hong Kong – the first of its kind in Asia.

Watsons launches its loyalty programme in Asia – first in Taiwan, rolling it out in Mainland China, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia.

Watsons becomes Asia’s No. 1 Pharmacy/ Drugstore brand (we subsequently won 12 consecutive years)

Our first eCommerce sites open in Mainland China, marking the beginning of Watsons’ seamless O+O (offline plus online) strategy.

eLab is established as the internal innovation hub to seize the emerging O+O opportunities.

Watsons launches Member Elite VIP programme.

DataLab is setup to further build big data capabilities.

G8 (8^th generation) store concept is launched.

Watsons connects with 10 million Facebook fans, building a strong global social network.

Watsons One Pass launches to provide cross-border shopping benefits at overseas stores.

Watsons reaches 100 million loyalty members in Asia, forming a strong network of beauty and wellness lovers.

Watsons celebrates the milestone of reaching 7,000 stores in the region.

Watsons strengthens its commitment to social and environmental sustainability, with a new brand purpose.

Take a glimpse of how we set the standard in beauty, health and wellbeing, providing customers with more reasons to visit.

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We are the first health and beauty retailer in Asia to launch a virtual makeup and hair colour try-on service within the mobile app.

Watsons has teamed up with a network of social media influencers around the world, to share the latest beauty trends and exclusive collections, available through the #WatsonsBeautyBox

Our customers and fans can interact with Watsons wherever they are, online or in stores, via professional makeovers, beauty livestreams and live product reviews.

At Watsons, we have a strong sense of responsibility to create a better world through our global operations. Beyond our day-to-day operations in health and beauty, we are committed to initiatives that inspire behavioural change, and lead to a more sustainable world. We share this vision with our colleagues, our customers and our communities.

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