Opinion | Tory Burch waited for the China market to develop before expanding

A terrace of The Peninsula hotel in Shanghai had been converted to look like the inside of Tory Burch's spectacular Hampshire estate dining room.

The details were followed to the letter, and the terrace included the books she has in her home, her Moroccan mirrors, elaborately printed wallpaper, and white and blue tablecloths.

Burch sat next to Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi, and the tables were filled with mainland VIPs, press, and celebrities. Chefs from cooler-than-thou New York restaurant The Fat Radish were flown in to cater for the occasion, and US dancer Lil' Buck performed. Celebrations that night in Shanghai certainly had some style.

With the high-luxury slowdown on the mainland, more affordable and accessible brands are making headway, and a more price-conscious and choosy client base is developing. "Affordable luxury" brands such as Tory Burch are becoming a threat to the grand European heritage houses.

Burch, an intuitive businesswoman who has built a billion-dollar empire in just 10 years, opened her biggest store Shanghai's Jing An Kerry centre.

The 9,000 sq ft store, decorated in Burch's plush signature style with personal interior touches and decorative influences taken from exotic world travels, lies on prime Shanghai real estate. It ironically sits right opposite a competitor, Michael Kors.