In 1987 GOME's first electrical appliance retail outlet was opened in Beijing. In 1999 the company expanded outside of Beijing to Tianjin. In 2004, GOME was selected as one of the "Key and Strategically Important Enterprises" in China by the Ministry of Commerce. In 2006 the company merged with China Paradise.
As of 2010 there were a total of 826 stores, 572 traditional stores, 13 digital stores and 2 flagship stores throughout mainland China.
In November 2008 the Hong Kong Stock Exchange indefinitely halted trading of the company shares after police revealed that Wong was under investigation for stock manipulation.[5] He resigned from company chairman on 16 January 2009.[6]
In November 2010, the company reported third quarter 2010 net profit of 477.5 million yuan, an increase of 24 per cent from the same period in 2009, despite a public dispute between founder Wong and chairman Chen Xiao over business strategy.[7]
In January 2013, it was announced that Gome badged retail stores in Hong Kong would begin to close from March 2013, the six stores concerned were owned directly by Wong and not the listed company.[8][9] The move marks a shift in emphasis for the company from one based on overseas expansion to one based on an increasing presence online and in second tier Chinese cities, although the company will remain in Hong Kong as a wholesaler.