Ikea, the Swedish home furnishings retailer has revealed that it would be commencing its e-commerce operations in India by March 2019. The company’s third store in India, which would be located in Bengaluru, will open in 2020 summer and would be a 5,00,000 square ft. facility.
Ikea India CEO, Peter Betzel informed recently that the company has estimated that the new store will attract over 7 million visitors annually. The facility will also boast of a 1,000 seater restaurant that will serve Indian and Swedish delicacies, besides having a parking space big enough to accommodate nearly 2,000 vehicles.
Ikea considers Karnataka as a priority market and in the long term, intends to invest more than Rs 2,000 crore in the state. The company aims to create a multichannel experience for Indian customers and will be launching e-commerce in Mumbai by next summer, Betzel had stated.
In Bengaluru to attend the ground-breaking ceremony of Ikea’s third store in India, Betzel confirmed the company has an online platform already. It is now in the process of maximizing business prospects by connecting different platforms and will also unveil other touch points in an attempt to bridge the gap between the brand and the customers.
Speaking on whether online sales would be the company’s point of focus for generating revenues in the imminent future, Betzel said Ikea is trying to achieve total integration of both the platforms. The company is, however, expecting higher number of online orders in coming days, he specified.
With intense competition being offered from e-commerce giants like Flipkart-Walmart and Amazon, Ikea would be seeking profitability by expanding the business online along with physical meeting points, Betzel added. Though the company is uncertain regarding the probable time it will take for this venture to become profitable, Betzel hinted that Ikea is looking at reaching profitability stage over the coming years.