Ikea changes strategy. She wants to enter city centers because her clients do not have cars

The Swedish network has just faced a serious problem. Her research shows that a large proportion of customers do not have their own cars, and Ikea stores are usually located outside the city. Prescription? Transfer them to the center.

Saturday, I devote a trip with my wife to Ikea - a horse with a row, to someone who has never heard such a sentence in response to the question about weekend plans. Ikea has accustomed us that she puts her huge exhibition halls away from the city's gates. A trip to the store, for people who do not have their own car, is often an expedition that takes up a significant part of the day.

And today's consumer is not used to it. Only a dozen or so years ago, supermarkets of comparable size to football stadiums ruled in Poland. Later, the trend began to reverse. In the center of attention there were shops where you could buy most of the most needed things without moving from home more than a few blocks away.

Such a strategy has been chosen by, for example, Biedronka, which has been investing heavily in premises on the ground floor in newly built blocks for some time. It seemed, however, that Ikea did not have to copy this model. After all, we usually go for rolls every day, new glasses, not to mention furniture, we buy at most once every few months. The Swedes, however, are of a different opinion.

Juvencio Maeztu, vice president of finance at Ingka Group , told Reuters that Ikea will look for locations in city centers. Smaller, but more accessible for metropolitan residents.

Analyzes carried out by the network indicate that customers do not have cars or do not want to drive to the suburbs anymore.

And in one and the other case - something had to be done. Ikea got to work right away. In London, she set up a shop in the Greenwich district. In Warsaw, with a bang, it announced the opening of the facility in the Blue City shopping center, a dozen or so minutes drive from the very center. The next ones are soon to be built in the center of Paris and Moscow.

The network is also preparing to open a store in Vienna on one of the main streets - Mariahilferstrasse. The proximity of the metro station will allow small items to be transported home without much difficulty. And the furniture will look in the living room and order with delivery to the door from a suburban warehouse.

In New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, ​​Tokyo, Shanghai, Mumbai, we will have more of these medium-sized stores in the future, Maeztu explains.

On the Vistula, Ikea came up with another good idea.

Do not have your car? No problem, borrow a supplier.

The network got along last year with Traficar , who put Renault Kangoo VAN on its parking lots. In this variant, however, there is a small problem, because the car can be rented and given only under Ikea. This means that after unloading we return to the store and ... we are again far from the city. As for the transport of furniture itself - a great thing. However, it is still very time-consuming and can be more expensive than ordering goods from an online store with delivery and courier .

Well, like every car sharing - it costs you. The driving minute is 80 gr plus 50 gr per kilometer and 10 gr per stop. And, that Ikea does not manage to finance financial cream, the majority of her clients will probably react to the idea of ​​moving to the center with a deep sigh. Relief.

Ikea changes strategy. She wants to enter city centers because her clients do not have cars