First Advertisement for Gruen Watches

Marketing the Gruen image was an important part of Frederick Gruen’s leadership of the company. In 1911, he hired the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency to help promote the Gruen brand. On October 7, 1911, the first Gruen watch advertisement appeared in print. It was published in The Saturday Evening Post. Designed by J. Walter Thompson Co., the advertisement featured an aerial view of a Swiss city surrounded by an Alpine landscape. The reference to Switzerland, as opposed to the Gruen family’s native Germany, was a clear attempt to link the Gruen company to Swiss watchmaking traditions. J. Walter Thompson advertisement for Gruen watches in The Saturday Evening Post, October 7, 1911.