After announcing its plan for India six years ago, Swedish retail giant IKEA is now all geared up to launch its first store in Hyderabad by next month.
Ahead of the retailer’s store launch, Patrik Antoni, IKEA’s deputy country manager in India, in an interview to Quartz said that the firm is entering Indian market in totality, not just as a store.
It will launch the store with 7,500-8000 products, which will be available at all prices and dimensions to cater to people’s needs.
It will also be looking at smaller format stores in Mumbai. After launching in Hyderabad, IKEA plans to open the second store in Mumbai during 2019, followed by Bengaluru and Delhi NCR.
“We are exploring Pune, Chennai, Kolkata, Surat already”, added Antoni. It is also planning to offer service in store for consumers.
In 2012, the world’s largest furniture retailer first announced its India plans with an initial investment of Rs 10,500 crore.
Over the years, it has also talked with state governments including Telangana, Karnataka and Maharashtra for sourcing wood for furniture. It also inclines to invest Rs 3,000-4,000 crore in Maharashtra over the next 2-3 years. The furniture firm will also deploy Rs 2,000 crore to open up two new stores in West Bengal.
In March this year, the Swedish firm appointed Peter Betzel as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for its India business.
IKEA had also emphasised earlier that in next five years as much as 30 per cent of products it sells in India will be sourced locally. The company has identified 49 Indian cities where it wants to set up physical stores.
On the competition front, Urban Ladder and Pepperfry also offer furniture through a mix of online and offline channels. Entry of Swedish furniture firm in the homeware and furniture market will raise the competition as well as the bar for local players.
According to a Redseer Consulting report, the home furniture industry is a $25 billion market altogether, of which $250 million is online.
IKEA has 403 stores around the world. Currently, it is present in 51 countries.
