After the Opium War, the Qing government signed the treaty of nanking with Britain, and Shanghai became a trading port. 1845, the British colonial authorities set up a concession in the north of Pidgin. At that time, Nanjing Road was still a "wetland" with many streams. Nanjing Road Commercial Street was formed in the continuous expansion of concession. In order to meet the growing entertainment requirements of foreigners, Hawke of Ruilin Foreign Company of England organized a horse racing association on 1848, and surpassed the British concession, occupying 80 mu of land near Wusheng Temple (now west of Henan and north of Nanjing East Road), building gardens and throwing courts, and building racetracks around the gardens, making it the earliest racetrack in Shanghai. The path from Garden to Huangpu Beach is called "Garden Lane", also called "Park Lane", which is the easternmost section of Nanjing Road. After the establishment of the racecourse, there was an endless stream of vendors and the market was prosperous. At this time, the battle of the Knife Club spread, and residents from various counties in Shanghai flooded into the concession, and the land price in the concession soared 10 times. The Jockey Club sold the original racecourse at the price of 1.2 times, and purchased 1.70 mu of land in Zhoujiabang (east of Tibet Middle Road and west of Hubei Road) to build a second racecourse at the price of 1.854, which is called "New Garden". Garden Lane was immediately built into the new garden, and the market was also expanded. The newly-built garden is 20 feet wide and its surface is paved with broken bricks and stone chips. It is flattened with stones, and the carriage can run on it, commonly known as "road". With the growing prosperity around the new garden, the Happy Club will sell the new garden at a high price. /kloc-in 0/863, a racetrack hall covering an area of 430 mu was built on the west bank of Nichengbang (now around People's Square and People's Park). This racecourse hall is called "the largest racecourse in the Far East". At that time, there were various names of horse racing gambling, such as Champagne Race, Golden Bottle Race, Big Skin Race, etc., which was called "the first gambling den in Shanghai". Garden Lane extended to Happy Valley Hall, widened to 40 feet, and the surface was covered with coal dust. After the expansion, the garden became the main traffic road in the British Concession, which was called "main road" or "main road in England". Happy Valley Road continues to extend westward to Jing 'an Temple, named Yongquan Road, also known as Jing 'an Temple Road. In order to commemorate the benefits of the unequal treaty treaty of nanking signed with the Qing government in 1840, the Ministry of Industry of British Concession officially named the main road "Nanjing Road" in 1865. In a word, Nanjing Road in Shanghai was named after the treaty of nanking by the Shanghai Concession authorities. After treaty of nanking, Shanghai became a trading port. Westerners stationed in Shanghai built a road next to the racecourse, which became Nanjing Road.

After entering the 20th century, the business of Nanjing Road further prospered. According to 19 15, there are six newspapers, including Fair, Diners, Boxing, etc. 1 1, Harbin Real Estate Company, He Qian Real Estate Company, Times and German Newspaper. 19 14 after the outbreak of the first world war, the western powers were busy with the war and temporarily relaxed their economic control over China. Due to the basic cessation of foreign trade, the lack of imported goods, and the rapid development of national industry and commerce, Shixian Company and Yongan Company have successively opened in Nanjing Road. Jewelry stores such as Dalun, Laojie Liquor, Laojie Silk Bureau, Fei, Fang Jiuxia and Laofengxiang in the old city have all moved to Nanjing Road. From the 1920s to the mid-1930s, famous shops such as Xinya Cantonese Restaurant, Guoguang Porcelain Store, Peromont Suit Store, Wu Optical Store, Shengxi Fumao Store and Dachangxiang Silk Store competed to build houses on Nanjing Road, and companies such as Xinxin, Daxin and Domestic Products were established one after another. A number of high-grade commercial and office buildings such as Jinmen, International, Sassoon, Harbin and Cishu have been put into commercial operation, and some of them have reached the world level. Nanjing Road business is developing from traditional professional business to global modernization, comprehensiveness and multifunction. At the same time, the commercial outlets and funds of Nanjing Road are gradually concentrated, and the powerful commercial network faces the whole country and the world, forming two "plates" to control the market in Shanghai and even the whole country. In 1930s, Nanjing Road enjoyed unprecedented commercial prosperity, and was known as "the world's commercial giant", "the city that never sleeps" and "the capital of sound, light and electricity". From War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression to the liberation of Shanghai, the business of Nanjing Road has experienced many ups and downs. During the "isolated island" period, the concession once again became a refuge, the population and hot money increased sharply, and the business of Nanjing Road flourished abnormally. The streets are bustling and lively, and shops, restaurants and playgrounds are constantly opening. The annual turnover of Yongan Company 194 1 is 5% higher than that of 1938. 5 times, profit growth 1 1 times. Daxin Company achieved a net profit of 1938 to 194 1 year, which was three times more than the original capital. 194 1 At the end of the year, the Pacific War broke out, and the Japanese army occupied the concession and blocked Nanjing Road several times. Hardware, medicine, cotton cloth and leather are listed as controlled materials, and their operation is restricted. During the period of 1948, the national government carried out the monetary reform, and Nanjing Road was hit by the rush to buy, and the supply of goods was in short supply. Ta Kung Pao reported that "all daily necessities and shops were snapped up." Lihua's button counter even stipulates that each person is limited to one pill, which is ridiculous. However, compared with other regions, Nanjing Road still maintained a relatively prosperous pattern during this period, occupying the position of Shanghai's commercial leader.

According to statistics, 1938 Nanjing Road has 275 firms, and 1947 Nanjing Road has 340 firms with facade records (see 1947 version of the Directory of Shanghai Company Road). In the late 1940s, there were thousands of wholesale shops in Nanjing Road and its branches, which had a decisive impact on the wholesale and retail industry in Shanghai. Since the 1950s, many changes have taken place in the commercial operation direction and mode of Nanjing Road. On the one hand, due to the economic blockade of foreign countries, a large number of foreign businessmen left the country, foreign-funded enterprises closed down one after another, the import of foreign goods was interrupted, and high-end consumers such as bureaucrats, comprador and bourgeoisie lost their economic base, and the commercial sales of Nanjing Road, which mainly engaged in high-end goods, plummeted. Many private enterprises are in trouble, and a number of shops, such as Red Star, Nanyang Pharmacy, Dalun, Zhangdian, Zhangdian and Satin Zhuang, have closed down. On the other hand, in the pursuit of ownership, "one big and two big", the economic form is increasingly single. In the commercial management system, one-sided emphasis on high concentration leads to excessive unification, which greatly weakens the original function of large-scale import, export and entrepot trade of Nanjing Road. The import, export and wholesale businesses are run by state-owned professional companies, and the business of Nanjing Road has gradually evolved from wholesale to retail. 1999, this "first commercial street in China" was transformed into the first all-weather pedestrian street in China. In this way, there is a division of business circle positioning between Nanjing West Road and Nanjing East Road. Nanjing West Road has gradually become a top brand distribution center, while Nanjing East Road has become a tourist shopping and leisure street.

Nanjing Road is a concentrated expression of Shanghai's economic development and a region with a strong modern economic atmosphere. This road adds a rich flavor to the city. 1957 "public-private partnership" has greatly adjusted the commercial layout of Nanjing Road, with textile, watch, medicine, department stores and other industries highly concentrated and insufficient catering services. Moved into old shops such as Dafeng, Caizhizhai, Pengjie, Haida, Laorisheng and Hengyuanxiang, and 26 shops such as haircuts, scientific instruments and typewriters; Expand 9 stores including Zhang Xiaoquan, Zhangzidian, Zhonghe Telecom Equipment and Hengdali; Rectify, transform and cancel some industries and shops, close 9 watch shops, 1 fragrance shops, and dismantle 1 1 silk shops and 23 department stores; Change the chaotic situation of new world and Huaxin department store and build a comprehensive shopping mall; A number of new outlets such as Xinhua Bookstore, Arts and Crafts Service Department, Stamp Company and Newspaper Sales Department have been established one after another. Another group of clothing, silk fabrics, furniture stores and photo studios support other provinces and cities such as Beijing. After a series of network adjustment, Nanjing Road has formed a comprehensive commercial street with relatively complete industry equipment, basically reasonable network layout and relatively concentrated famous and special commercial points. During the "Cultural Revolution", the wind of "breaking the four old things and creating four new things" swept Nanjing Road, and more than 90% of famous shops' signboards were smashed. It turns out that there are traditional handicrafts and famous local products from all over the country, 10 local dishes and cakes from Beijing, Guangdong, Sichuan, Yang and other places, as well as photography, hairdressing, clothing, shoes and hats with unique skills and styles.