Business Express is an online portal that covers the latest developments in the world of business and finance. From startups and entrepreneurship to mergers and acquisitions, Business Express provides reporting on the stories that matter most to business leaders and decision-makers.The website publishes news, press releases, opinion and advertorials on various financial organizations, products and services which are commissioned from various Companies, Organizations, PR agencies, Bloggers etc. These commissioned articles are commercial in nature. This is not to be considered as financial advice and should be considered only for information purposes. It does not reflect the views or opinion of our website and is not to be considered an endorsement or a recommendation. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information provided with respect to your individual or personal circumstances. Please seek Professional advice from a qualified professional before making any financial decisions. We link to various third-party websites, affiliate sales networks, and to our advertising partners websites. When you view or click on certain links available on our articles, our partners may compensate us for displaying the content to you or make a purchase or fill a form. This will not incur any additional charges to you. To make things simpler for you to identity or distinguish advertised or sponsored articles or links, you may consider all articles or links hosted on our site as a commercial article placement. We will not be responsible for any loss you may suffer as a result of any omission or inaccuracy on the website.
2023 06 01T200550Z 1 LYNXMPEJ501VL RTROPTP 4 IKEA STORES
2023 06 01T200550Z 1 LYNXMPEJ501VL RTROPTP 4 IKEA STORES

IKEA stores owner Ingka starts on first New Zealand store


By Marie Mannes

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – IKEA stores owner Ingka group has announced the official start of work on its delayed first store in New Zealand, which it predicts will be followed by other outlets as the Asia-Pacific region recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic and macro-economic shocks.

In a filing in 2022 the company referred to a proposed opening date of December 2024, but the store in Auckland, New Zealand’s biggest city, is now expected to open late in 2025.

Head of Retail at Ingka group Tolga Oncu told Reuters preliminary opening dates were often subject to change.

“These are long projects so quite often the original intent of when you actually can open doesn’t become the reality,” Oncu said, adding that the macro-economic situation in the last three years has been extraordinary.

Oncu said Asia is a fast growing market – with the latest six-to-eight months showing a positive development – helped by China’s reopening after COVID-19.

Asked about possible stores in other parts of New Zealand, Oncu said he did not expect the one in Auckland to be enough.

“So one can expect that IKEA in the long term is going to continue to look for opportunities to expand in New Zealand,” he said.

Don't miss out on any breaking news or insightful opinions!
Subscribe to our free newsletter and stay updated on the go!


By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: Global Banking & Finance Review. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email.

Although the store will be geographically furthest away from IKEA’s main operations in Europe, Ingka said the company could mitigate the logistics impact through existing operations in Australia.

“We have learned how to manage that, how to become more effective, efficient, more sustainable, but of course I can’t shy away from the fact that every kilometre comes with a price tag,” Oncu said.

Globally, there are more than 450 IKEA stores, most of which are owned by the Ingka group. The rest are controlled by other franchisees.

The group was hard hit by supply chain issues and raw materials costs linked to the pandemic as one of the world’s biggest users of wood.

 

(Reporting by Marie Mannes in Stockholm and Lucy Craymer in Wellington; editing by Barbara Lewis)

 

Recent Post: