TDK advertising gallery
The following TDK cassette advertisements appeared in contemporary magazines. Changing from era to era, they show how TDK built its brand image.
1974. SA
The striped-packaging period of the early and mid-1970s, emphasizing closeness to the customer.
1972. SD
1977. AD and Miles Davis
AD in 1977: Miles Davis and the famous advertising copy that heralded a new era.
1980. OD: Mozart
1979. New Dynamic Series
1984. AD: Bluegrass
The early 1980s: TDK dominates the cassette market, and its advertising becomes ever more sophisticated.
1981. MUSIC REFERENCE AD
1981. SA: PRESENCE
1981. SA-X
1982. ACOUSTIC CONCEPT AD-X
1983: retaining its sophistication, TDK once again turns toward a mass audience through transparent shells.
1983. AD-SPLENDOR
1983. HX
1984. Musictracer AD
1984. ACOUSTIC RESPONSE AR
1985. SA-X: Bill Evans
The mid-1980s, the cassette’s mature period: an emphasis on restrained design and performance.
1984. REALISTIC CONCEPT SA
TDK cassette television commercials
How many do you remember?
1970s - 1990s From the 1970s, TDK also advertised its products on television. Let us nostalgically recall who appeared in these commercials.
Candies - mid-1970s
Source: YouTube
Ikue Sakakibara - mid-1970s
Source: YouTube
Bee Gees - early 1980s
Source: YouTube
Stevie Wonder - early to mid-1980s
Source: YouTube
Southern All Stars - mid-1980s
Source: YouTube
The Checkers - mid-1980s
Source: YouTube
Kahoru Kohiruimaki - late 1980s
Source: YouTube
Motoharu Sano - early 1990s
Source: YouTube
Asaka Seto - early 1990s
Source: YouTube
With the arrival of the 1970s, the boom in recording radio broadcasts increased demand for cassettes. TDK began making television commercials in 1972. Initially they featured no celebrities, but in 1975 a TDK cassette commercial, Wordplay - Trumpet, brought Kinya Aikawa, then very popular on radio, onto home screens. Candies, Ikue Sakakibara and other idols subsequently appeared in comic D commercials. The material suggests that the advertising department invited familiar, approachable performers to make TDK known nationwide.
In the 1980s, overseas stars such as Stevie Wonder and the Bee Gees appeared in AD advertisements. The advertising department apparently felt that an era of big products and big stars was beginning. In the mid-1980s, The Checkers, particularly popular with young women, were invited to advertise AD, while Southern All Stars promoted AD and SF.
In the second half of the 1980s, Kahoru Kohiruimaki and other performers appeared in SR commercials. In the 1990s, TDK advertising featured Kome Kome CLUB and globe, led by Tetsuya Komuro at the height of his popularity. SUPER CDing commercials featured a very young Asaka Seto.