IKEA launches new Beijing store

Apr 14, 2006. /Lesprom Network/. With the flags lowered and cash tills closed, IKEA China announced on Tuesday the closing of its Beijing store and the opening of bigger premises in the capital, according to Asia Pulse. The new store in Siyuanqiao is open for business from April 13. For the world's leading home appliances and furnishings chain retailer, it is its second biggest store, following just the Stockholm shop in Sweden. The new building covers 43 000 square meters, whereas the old one in Madian had around 15 000 square meters. There are plans to have 10 IKEA branches in China by 2010, the firm said. The new building is located by the Fourth Ring Road in northeast Beijing. The old one was next to the heavily congested north section of the Third Ring Road where customers were inconvenienced by heavy traffic. The new store has 2 000 more products than the old one, giving customers around 7 000 items to consider buying. Construction, including buying the land in 2003, cost IKEA "very close to $100 million, exceeding our expectations," said Ian Duffy, president of IKEA Asia Pacific. "We are excited about the many opportunities in Beijing," said Gillian Drakeford, store manager of the IKEA Siyuanqiao store. "In China, IKEA plans to open more and more stores. As part of its China expansion plan, the opening of the Beijing Siyuanqiao store also symbolizes a significant step in this process. We hope Beijing citizens will love more of our products and get more inspiration from the room-settings and have a lot of fun at IKEA." Since it first entered China in 1998, IKEA has opened three stores here, respectively in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou. The Guangzhou store opened its doors last October while the original Madian branch in Beijing was the second of the Chinese shops, opening in 1999.