This Day, That Year

Editor's Note: This year marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up policy.

In 1978, Beijing's most popular hair salon, Silian Hairdressing, began offering perms with the approval of the central government.

The shop's brand-new, cutting-edge perm machines attracted crowds of customers, as well as numerous foreign reporters. The news that China had started to allow its citizens to curl their hair quickly spread throughout the world.