IKEA will be opening three new stores as part of major expansion plans for the UK. The furniture retailer is currently working to open stores closer to where customers “live, socialise, and do their weekly shop”.
The new IKEA stores will open on former Homebase sites in the Greyhound Retail Park in Chester, Harlow Retail Park in Harlow, and Hall Road Retail Park in Norwich. The exact opening dates for each of the new IKEA locations have yet to be confirmed, but the company says all three new stores will open in 2025.
The Swedish furniture giant describes it as offering “the classic Ikea experience that customers know and love, on a smaller scale. The new stores will follow the usual IKEA market hall setup, and customers will be able to follow familiar signage around the store.
Each site will showcase 5,000 product lines, with up to 3,000 available for immediate purchase through its digital services. Stores will also have click-and-collect services.
Alongside this, the three new stores will feature a compact version of IKEA’s beloved in-store restaurants, although customers can only get takeaway options but they will still be able to get the retailer’s iconic meatballs.
The opening follows three years of renovation works, which include upgrades to enhance the property’s environmental performance and refurbishing its original features. The three new sites join IKEA’s existing portfolio of 21 full stores in the UK, an order and collection point in Aberdeen, and three plan and order points in Aintree, Preston and Stockport.
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The announcement comes ahead of a highly anticipated store on London’s Oxford Street this spring and its city centre store in Brighton later this year.
Last month, the retailer said it had received 3,730 applications in just six days for the Oxford Street store – more than ten times the 150 available positions.
Peter Jelkeby, IKEA UK and Ireland CEO, said: “We know many people want to shop with IKEA but in some instances we are just too far away. That’s why we are strategically expanding our UK footprint, with the aim of showing up in convenient, accessible locations for our customers.
“Centrally located in retail parks, our three new stores mark a major step forward in our expansion plan, making it easier than ever for customers in these areas to shop with us.”
Peter Jelkeby added: “Harlow, Chester and Norwich have long been areas of interest to us, and we’re looking forward to bringing the very best of the IKEA experience in a refreshingly compact format to these communities later this year.”
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