IKEA is planning a major expansion in the U.S. within the next few years, the company announced Thursday.
The Sweden-based furniture store is going to spend around $2.2 billion in the next three years on opening eight new stores, nine Plan and Order points, and 900 pick-up locations, creating over 2,000 jobs in the process.
The Plan and Order points are smaller storefronts that will contain furniture for kitchens, bedrooms, and living rooms only. The pick-up locations will service those who make online orders.
This is the largest investment the company has made in 40 years.
The expansion is all a part of IKEA’s “omnichannel growth strategy,” the company stated. The omnichannel approach sets out to ensure that the consumer experience is as good as possible across every channel that consumers may use to purchase or interact with the company.
Tolga Öncü, head of IKEA Retail, Ingka Group, acknowledged the U.S. as one of the most important markets and said in the company’s announcement, “More than ever before, we want to increase the density of our presence in the U.S., ramp up our fulfillment capacities and make our offer even more relevant to local customers’ needs and dreams.”
CEO & Chief Sustainability Officer Javier Quiñones, IKEA U.S., echoed these same sentiments, saying, “We know U.S. customers have a strong desire for more ways to shop and experience IKEA, and this growth plan will allow us to meet that need.”
“We are committed to continuing to grow in this market with our thousands of co-workers and millions of customers who look to IKEA for home furnishing inspiration and solutions at an affordable price. Our priority is to become more accessible, while staying as affordable as possible for … many people, which is especially important given the increasing costs of living.”
The company will also be putting some of the investment into its current stores, modernizing them, focusing on delivery services directly from storefronts, and aiming to ensure that deliveries are faster, more sustainable, and more affordable.