IKEA Debuts Central Paris Location

As IKEA moves to create a new range of stores to meet the changing habits of consumers, the furniture retailer opened its first store in the center of Paris. The store is located in the Madeleine district of central Paris, Reuters reported.

Ingka Group Chief Executive Jesper Brodin told the outlet, “La Madeleine is an innovation test laboratory for us. We want to serve the people who know and love IKEA but think IKEA is too far away.” The store, which has two levels, will employ 140 people. It will also feature a restaurant and a salad bar. In addition, the store is said to host cooking classes as well as workshops on home renovation or furniture repair.

Products that aren’t able to be taken from the location can be ordered through eCommerce and delivered to 350 pickup points or home. The report also noted the furniture company has roughly 10,000 people in its employ in France. The country is also said to be the company’s third biggest market following Germany and the U.S.

The news comes as it was reported in December that IKEA was planning on opening a new location in New York City that homes in on urban living. Dubbed the IKEA Planning Studio, the location opened in April. The store isn’t the first of its kind in the world, as the retailer opened a London Planning Studio store in October.

“We recognize that we are in a rapidly changing retail environment, and to be fit for long-term growth, IKEA is transforming in a way that lets us meet our customers where they are,” IKEA Retail U.S Country Manager Lars Petersson said in an announcement about the New York store. “New York City is the natural choice to open the first city center store — the most vibrant, dynamic city in the U.S., and the epicenter of retail, business, and culture.”