Swedish furniture retailer Ikea is all set to launch its first store in India. The 4,00,000 sq feet store in Hyderabad will open early next year. The company recently held the traditional ‘groundbreaking ceremony’ in Navi Mumbai for its first store in Maharashtra and second in India and for its third store in the country it has acquired land in Bengaluru. The Navi Mumbai store will be 4,30,000 sq ft in size with 1,500 parking spots and about 1,000 seats Indian and Swedish restaurant and a play area for children. The Swedish furniture retailer brand plans to launch 25 stores in India by 2030.
For its India launch, the team has carried out over 800 home visits in the past two years. Popular for its do-it-yourself (DIY), the brand plans to offer its products via e-commerce and will also provide home delivery and after-sales assembly services to the customers.
Kitchen Products
Ikea global range includes about 9,000 products, that includes everything from furniture to cutlery to textile furnishings, all of which will be available in India. About 6-7 percent products in cookware are designed specifically taking in consideration Indian lifestyle. The products will include idli maker, spice jars, pressure cookers, chapati pans and other stainless-steel kitchen products.
DIY Furniture
Globally, Ikea is popular ‘do-it-yourself’ (DIY) furniture range, that requires some assembly at home but considering Indians not used to ‘do-it-yourself’ furniture, Ikea plans to provide after-sales assembly services to customers. Initially, the company plans to have an in-house assembly at Ikea stores.
Restaurants
The Ikea stores are also popular for their in-house restaurants. The Hyderabad store will house the largest Ikea restaurant in the world with a capacity of 1,000 seats. Half of the food served here will be Swedish while the remaining will be localised and will be different across all its Indian stores. Even the Swedish foods will have an Indian twist. For instance, Ikea’s popular meatballs will be made of chicken in India.
Hiring
As Ikea will have an in-house assembly service, it will hire more people to do the job. The Indian stores will generate employment to around 500-700 people with an additional 1,500 people for home deliveries and assemblies.
