Tang wanted to turn the company into a global brand, and so his Hong Kong location was followed by 24 outlets worldwide over the years, including Bangkok, Beijing, Honolulu, London, Miami, New York City (1997-1999[11]), Las Vegas, Madrid, Paris, Shanghai, Tokyo, Singapore and Macau.

[2] Shanghai Tang's first American store was opened in New York on November 21, 1997,[7] and in 1998, the Swiss company Richemont bought a controlling stake in the fashion house.

[12] However, the New York store, located on Madison Avenue, closed in less than two years due to lower-than-expected sales, relative to the high rent.

[13][2] In 2001, Raphael le Masne de Chermont, from the parent company Richemont, was appointed CEO of Shanghai Tang.

[10] Le Masne de Chermont and Ooi opted to transform the brand from 1930s Shanghai, into a more contemporary style that retained its vibrant colours from previous designs (Heine & Phan 2013, p. 16).

[20] After 17 years, in October 2011, the company's 6,300-square-foot flagship store in Hong Kong's Pedder Building closed, with rising rents being cited as the main reason.

[8] Shanghai Tang lost the space to American retailer Abercrombie & Fitch, who were prepared to pay two-and-a-half times the original rent.

[22] In July 2017, Richemont sold Shanghai Tang to the Italian entrepreneur Alessandro Bastagli (Chairman of A. Moda) and the Hong Kong private equity fund Cassia Investments for an undisclosed amount.

[23] Then in December 2018, the Chinese private equity firm Lunar Capital acquired Shanghai Tang for an undisclosed amount.