Good design is about helping clients meet their needs and objectives. It is also about the way people feel when they experience a space — a sense of meaning, connection, and belonging.
We are much more than designers. We are storytellers, strategists, brand stewards, and curators of each client's unique property aesthetic and brand message. We create designs aimed to elevate the everyday experience. For us, it is not simply about the statement of space, but rather one's intense experience of that space that matters most.
MD is headquartered in Shanghai, with an overseas branch in Dubai and a branding studio (XY Branding & Graphic Design) in Singapore. We focus on the interior design of unique lifestyle hotels and residences. Our design philosophy is "A Design to Remember."
Our process is rigorous, listening-led, and material-first. We do not chase trends. We design rooms that hold their value over time — proportioned to be lived in, finished to age gracefully, and detailed so the building reads as inevitable rather than decorated.
Cathy Wang is the founder and creative director of Montaigne Design. With more than 20 years of experience, she began her career in hospitality design, where she accumulated extensive practical experience serving the Chinese market and international hospitality groups. After serving as Senior Design Director at HBA, Cathy founded MONTAIGNE DESIGN in Shanghai in 2011, leading a multicultural design team dedicated to international chain hotels, boutique hotels, and signature creative projects.
Cathy's design is timeless, elegant, and retro-modern — embodying the spirit that advances with time, emphasising the eternal values of space. Her work does not fade with time; it becomes more precious and outstanding through the refinement of time. She is enthusiastic about creating immersive, theatrical space experiences that mix emotion, design, art, and local culture.
"I am driven to do what I haven't done. I love a creative challenge — to learn a new craft, a new way of thinking, and doing things. The inspiration is always there. I am looking out of the window at a tree that has white leaves and wondering what I can do with it. Nature always inspires me."— Cathy Wang
- American IDA International Design Award
- British Andrew Martin Award Designer (23rd)
- German iF Interior Design Award
- China Interior Design Annual Cover Person
- 2018 United Nations Outstanding Chinese Designer
- AD100 China Most Influential Companies — three consecutive years
The non-negotiables of our practice. Calibrated by twenty years of building for international hospitality groups, brought to every private commission.
Twenty years of delivered hospitality interiors across luxury, upper-upscale, lifestyle, and serviced-residence brands.
Selected international design awards, magazine features, and editorial recognition.
- Andrew Martin International Interior Designer of the YearAndrew Martin
- IDA International Design Awards — Honorable MentionInternational Design Awards
- iF Interior Design AwardiF Design
- A' Design Awards — SilverA' Design Award & Competition
- Grands Prix du DesignGrands Prix du Design
- AD100 China — Most Influential CompaniesArchitectural Digest China · Three consecutive years
- United Nations Outstanding Chinese DesignerUnited Nations · 2018
- China Interior Design Annual Cover PersonChina Interior Design Annual
- APDC Asia Pacific Designers Conference Gold AwardAPDC · 2019
- IDA Interior Design Excellence AwardIDA China · 2019
- Designers of the Year — Interior Design MagazineInterior Design Magazine · 2014–2015
- Beauty Boomer Feature — ELLE DecorationELLE Decoration
- Beyond Designer Feature — ELLE DecorationELLE Decoration
- Pursuit of Passion Feature — AD ChinaArchitectural Digest China
- Cover Feature — Trends HomeTrends Home
- Feature — Case Da AbitareCase Da Abitare
- Cover Feature — Top Young 50 Chinese DesignersDesign Redefined
- Cover Feature — AD China Cool Eclectic ClassicsAD China
- Profile — Noblesse MagazineNoblesse
- Profile — DesignerJiaDesignerJia