Furniture giant Ikea is set to open a new smaller shop in a bid to become more accessible, with three new stores planned for this year.
The small store style will be located on existing retail parks in Harlow, Norwich and Chester, designed to offer customers a quicker shopping experience than is typically seen in their trademark giant warehouses.
An Ikea spokesperson told The Independent they expect more than 100 jobs to be created across all three sites, with the Harlow store opening its doors on 24 July and the other two set to follow later in 2025.
Unlike larger Ikea stores, which typically have dozens of showrooms set up and decorated with their furniture, the new smaller stores are intended to be easier to navigate and will allow customers to visit a hall of the most popular products, scan second-hand options and take home furnishings or small furniture items the same day.
There will also be online access for collection or next-day delivery service for bigger items, as well as planning services for decorating kitchens and bathrooms.
Selected food will also be available in-store or for takeaway.
The new stores will open on former Homebase sites at the following retail parks:
No date is yet confirmed for the opening of the Norwich and Chester stores, but an Ikea spokesperson said they should follow a similar timeframe to the Harlow store being open “just over 100 days after the lease was secured”.
Peter Jelkeby, CEO of Ikea UK and Ireland, said: “The opening of the Ikea Harlow small store is a landmark moment for us as we continue to evolve our retail offer and explore new ways to serve more people in more places. We look forward to joining this thriving town as part of the local community when we open our doors later this month.”
