Ikea India, the local subsidiary of the Swedish giant of the retail sale Ikea Group, finally enters the crucial market of Northern India after a prolonged phase of planning and rationalization of its local operations.
The company that started its physical route in 2018 with its first store in Hyderabad, has since launched `The Blue Box ” (a typical Ikea store) in three other cities – in Navi Mumbai (2020), Mumbai (2021) and Bangalore (2022). However, the vast market in the Delhi national capital region has remained intact, despite its commercial potential. This expectation, however, is over. From March 1, IKEA will serve the region via its online order and delivery system.
In addition, Ikea India will also serve nine other major cities in northern India – Agra, Prayagraj (Allahabad), Amritsar, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Kanpur, Lucknow, Ludhiana and Varanasi. To strengthen the supply chain, it has set up a centralized distribution center in Farrukhabad (UP) which can serve RCN and nine other markets.
But Ikea launched the electronic commerce service in Mumbai and several other key cities in Maharashtra and Gujarat in 2019. Ikea already delivers to more than 60 cities in India. So why this delay?
Well, Susanne Pulverrer, chief executive officer and CSO, Ikea India explains that in the early 2010s, it was the importance of the market in the North that pushed them to plan meticulously – which took time. Take, for example, Ikea puts almost 3 to 5 years to offer a store in India, because physical surveys in the houses of the inhabitants of the city to place the network of the supply chain and the design of a store consume time.
However, there is another key reason. While Ikea has been waiting for almost 11 years since its first body in India in 2013, its entry into the largest market has a plan for long -term growth. According to Pulverrer, while entering Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bangalore was the first phase of the plans in Ikea India, Delhi-NCR announces a new phase. “Our two NCR stores are coming soon. The Gurgaon store, inside a center of Ingka, should be unveiled in 2026, and Noida later, “Pulverre, which has been associated with the operations of Ikea India since it was at the planning stadium, tells Business today.
The next IKEA store in Gurgaon – located in sector 47 on 400,000 square feet. Plot, which will also house the first Ingka Group (Ingka Center) shopping center in India and will accommodate other retail and leisure brands. While the next project, in sector 51 in Noida, will measure 200,000 square feet. And, like many IKEA stores in India, is located near a metro station.
In addition, to better serve Delhi customers, IKEA also provides some (5-6) city stores – Ikea stores in smaller formats – in key neighborhoods like the south of Delhi. A typical IKEA store or a blue box – like that of Bangalore – measures approximately 400,000 square feet. In comparison, a city store measures around 60,000 to 100,000 square feet.
“It was a missing piece in our history of India. Now it’s our turn to go back and we look forward to bringing Ikea to Northern India. We are in phase 2 of our growth in the country and this launch through Delhi NCR and in other markets will help us create a solid base for our future omnichannel growth in the region, “she says.
The next phase also involves rapid expansion in other parts of the country. Keeping an eye on the lively market in Pune, the next Ikea Indian store is likely to appear in the second largest city in Maharashtra. While Chennai should be the next destination, Pulverre tells Bt.
