Swedish furniture giant Ikea has announced the first of three new ‘small-format’ retail stores is set to open this month, designed to offer consumers a more simplified shopping experience, which includes the purchase of kitchens and bedrooms.
Located in a retail park in Harlow, Essex, the store will open on July 24. This will be followed later in the year by additional small-format locations in Chester and Norwich. All three locations are said to be former Homebase stores, which were acquired following the company’s administration at the end of 2024.
The new smaller format is designed to offer the same products and services as traditional larger Ikea stores, but in a reduced size format, which Ikea hopes will be more accessible to those in suburban areas and small cities.
The stores will contain a showroom and market hall, in addition to Ikea’s kitchen and bedroom planning service. Ikea also says shoppers will have online access to its full product range, with the option of next day collection or home delivery.
Just like the furniture giant’s traditional warehouse-style stores, the new small format Ikea will also reportedly contain an in-store restaurant, specialising in the brand’s iconic Swedish meatballs.
Ikea’s move to this new format comes hot off the heels of Wren’s decision to also roll out “small format” retail stores in urban areas, which it began last month. Speaking exclusively to kbbreview, George Dymond, the managing director of Magnet UK, recently said his company was also prioritising the small-format urban store concept as well.
“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,” commented Peter Jelkeby, CEO and CSO of Ikea UK & Ireland. He added: “We look forward to joining this thriving town as part of the local community when we open our doors later this month.”
Chris Vince, Harlow’s MP, also said: “It’s great to see Ikea opening its doors in Harlow this month. This marks a positive step for the town, bringing new opportunities for local residents and a welcome addition to the retail offering in the area.”
Interestingly, this is not the first time Ikea has pursued a smaller store model. In 2018, the retailer opened a mini-store in the heart of London’s West End, which had a specific focus on kitchen and bedroom planning. However, later that same year, Ikea disclosed its year-on-year profits had fallen by around €1.2bn, blaming the reduction on the steps it had taken to prepare for the small city-centre store model. Eventually, Ikea closed this store in 2021.