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<ul><li>Swedish furniture retailer Ikea has opened its online for the residents of Mumbai, India's financial capital.</li><li>The company's launch in India's financial capital comes a year after its debut in Hyderabad.</li><li>That would pit the company directly in competition with the likes of Amazon, Flipkart, and Urban Ladder.</li></ul>Swedish furniture retailer Ikea has opened its online for the residents of Mumbai, India's financial capital. The launch in India's financial capital has come a year after the debut in Hyderabad. Mumbai will be the first city in the world where the multinational furniture retailer is going online without a physical store. With the entry of Ikea into one of the country's biggest consumer markets, competition is heating in the furniture space between a host of retailers both online and offline including the likes of Urban Ladder, Pepperfry, Home Town and Home Centre. However, organised retail is only a small portion of the total furniture demand, for which these players will battling each other. Going online first is not the only thing different about Ikea’s entry into Mumbai. Even after its online debut, the iconic stores of gargantuan size, roughly half a million square feet each, will be absent at least to start with. “The smaller stores can be 50,000 sq. ft - 150,000 sq. ft., large depending on what locations we are able to find," India Managing Director <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ikea-mumbai-store-launch-to-take-on-pepperfry-urban-ladder-and-flipkart/articleshow/70563420.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Peter Betzel told Business Insider</a> in an interview earlier this month. While Betzel didn’t elaborate on the rationale, the smaller stores may make sense in a crowded place like Mumbai where real estate is available at an exorbitant premium and travel can be cumbersome even for interested customers. The New York experience Even in New York, Ikea has a ‘planning studio’ in the upscale Manhattan area and not the standard blue-box store. It seems to have a similar plan for Mumbai too. “In addition to ecommerce and the Navi store, IKEA will also open smaller city center stores. This will make us more accessible and bring us closer to where customers are,” Betzel said. Ikea calls these smaller stores ‘touch points’ for the customer to get an experience before making the purchase. “Currently the decision is to open two city center stores in different parts of Mumbai. There could be more online and offline touchpoints in the future based on the learnings from the market,” Ikea’s top boss in India explained. The race is hotting up While both Pepperfry and Urban Ladder may have a headstart, they are going up against a giant in Ikea. The two startups put together have received investments worth less than $300 million in the last six years. On the other hand, “Ikea has committed to invest 1.5 billion euros ($1.68 billion) so far. Three Indian cities are in the fast speed expansion markets namely Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi/NCR. Our focus on India will only increase in the future,” according to Betzel. Even Flipkart, India’s largest online retailer, now owned by Walmart, is looking to set up experience centres. It unveiled an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/flipkart-offline-furniture-store-puts-its-in-competition-with-pepperfry-ikea-urbanladder/articleshow/70427696.cms">1,800 square feet outlet in Bengaluru</a> on July 29. With the likes of Walmart and Ikea throwing in their hat, running against smaller but more agile and homegrown players like Pepperfry and Urban Ladder, furniture retail in India is certainly set for exciting times. That would pit the company directly in competition with the likes of Amazon, Flipkart, and Urban Ladder, who have spent years and billions in building a customer base in India. But Betzel is more sanguine than many others would be. “With more players, the whole category will grow even more. There is place for everyone,” he said. The furniture market in India is expected to be worth $17 billion in the next three years but the big shops, malls and snazzy online retailers with discounts and offers sell <a href="https://redseer.com/reports/disruption-in-indian-furniture-retailing/">less than two in every ten pieces of furniture</a> bought in India. The trend is changing, especially in urban areas, and there is enough headroom for growth for the organised segment. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ikea-mumbai-store-launch-to-take-on-pepperfry-urban-ladder-and-flipkart/articleshow/70563420.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Ikea will make its Mumbai debut ‘very shortly’, says India chief as the first store in Hyderabad turns a year old</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/i-visited-ikeas-new-manhattan-location-and-it-was-like-nothing-else-ive-seen-from-the-retailer/articleshow/68821133.cms">I visited Ikea's new Manhattan location - and it was like nothing else I've seen from the retailer</a>

Ikea in Mumbai: The Swedish retailer is wooing online shoppers in India's financial capital

Ikea has spent five years in India, and its flagship store in Hyderabad is turning a year old. Now, it’s time for its debut in the country’s financial capital, Mumbai, according to Peter Betzel, the Swedish furniture retailer’s Managing Director in India. An announcement is expected within the next few days, according to another source. “While the Navi Mumbai store is getting ready, our focus now is to launch e-commerce in Mumbai very shortly, to be able to meet the many Mumbaikars sooner,” Betzel told Business Insider in an exclusive interview. This is the first time the global retailer is entering a market without a physical store. That would pit the company directly in competition with the likes of Amazon, <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword>, and <keyword id="6368309" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="urban-ladder">Urban Ladder</keyword>, who have spent years and billions in building a customer base in India. But Betzel is more sanguine than many others would be. “With more players, the whole category will grow even more. There is place for everyone,” he said. The furniture market in India is expected to be worth $17 billion in the next three years but the big shops, malls and snazzy online retailers with discounts and offers sell <a href="https://redseer.com/reports/disruption-in-indian-furniture-retailing/">less than two in every ten pieces of furniture</a> bought in India. The trend is changing, especially in urban areas, and there is enough headroom for growth for the organised segment. 
 
 
 
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 Touch points Going online first is not the only thing different about Ikea’s entry into Mumbai. The iconic stores of gargantuan size, roughly half a million square feet each, will be absent at least to start with. “The smaller stores can be 50,000 sq. ft - 150,000 sq. ft., large depending on what locations we are able to find,” he said. While Betzel didn’t elaborate on the rationale, the smaller stores may make sense in a crowded place like Mumbai where real estate is available at an exorbitant premium and travel can be cumbersome even for interested customers. Even in New York, Ikea has a ‘planning studio’ in the upscale Manhattan area and not the standard blue-box store. It seems to have a similar plan for Mumbai too. “In addition to ecommerce and the Navi store, IKEA will also open smaller city center stores. This will make us more accessible and bring us closer to where customers are,” Betzel said. Ikea calls these smaller stores ‘touch points’ for the customer to get an experience before making the purchase. “Currently the decision is to open two city center stores in different parts of Mumbai. There could be more online and offline touchpoints in the future based on the learnings from the market,” Ikea’s top boss in India explained. Been there, done that Similar formats have been tried by other online furniture retailers in India like Pepperfry and Urban Ladder. Pepperfry had launched its first offline studio in 2014. Since then, they have expanded to 65 studios across 28 cities. In fact, in every city that Pepperfry has launched a studio, the sales had doubled, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/pepperfry-studio-location-to-increase-50-as-sales-double/articleshow/69859900.cms">according to the management</a>. “While we don’t sell directly through our offline studios, they contribute significantly to our sales. Close to 40% of our overall turnover comes from the online bookings made at these studios,” Mihir Kulkarni, Vice President and Head of Omnichannel expansion, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/flipkart-offline-furniture-store-puts-its-in-competition-with-pepperfry-ikea-urbanladder/articleshow/70427696.cms">Pepperfry told Business Insider in an earlier interview</a>. The race is hotting up While both Pepperfry and Urban Ladder may have a headstart, they are going up against a giant in Ikea. The two startups put together have received investments worth less than $300 million in the last six years. On the other hand, “Ikea has committed to invest 1.5 billion euros ($1.68 billion) so far. Three Indian cities are in the fast speed expansion markets namely Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi/NCR. Our focus on India will only increase in the future,” according to Betzel. Even Flipkart, India’s largest online retailer, now owned by Walmart, is looking to set up experience centres. It unveiled an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/flipkart-offline-furniture-store-puts-its-in-competition-with-pepperfry-ikea-urbanladder/articleshow/70427696.cms">1,800 square feet outlet in Bengaluru</a> on July 29. With the likes of Walmart and Ikea throwing in their hat, running against smaller but more agile and homegrown players like Pepperfry and Urban Ladder, furniture retail in India is certainly set for exciting times. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/i-visited-ikeas-new-manhattan-location-and-it-was-like-nothing-else-ive-seen-from-the-retailer/articleshow/68821133.cms">I visited Ikea's new Manhattan location - and it was like nothing else I've seen from the retailer</a>

Ikea will make its Mumbai debut ‘very shortly’, says India chief as the first store in Hyderabad turns a year old

The world’s largest furniture retailer has been present in India since the past 42 years with an office in the country since 30 years but it is finally opening a retail store in the country by 2018. The company had employed 135 people till last year and the number has been consistently growing. <keyword id="6371031" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ikea">IKEA</keyword> has been mainly sourcing textiles which make up for about 70% of the imports, but also sourcing materials like plastics and metals. “We are looking at different materials such as Mango wood, Rubber wood, Neem wood, and Bamboo in the coming months as it is an optimal material for furniture in India,” Henrik <keyword id="4461399" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="gunnerling">Gunnerling</keyword>, Purchase Development Manager, IKEA Range &amp; Supply told Business Insider. According to India’s retailing policy, foreign companies have to meet the 30% local sourcing norm, preferably from <keyword id="44779" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="SMEs">SMEs</keyword>. The Swedish company’s first two stores in India would be in metro cities of Hyderabad and <keyword id="57321" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Navi-Mumbai">Navi Mumbai</keyword>, and both are expected to open in 2018. <div type="embedgroup"> <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="58292743" title="Exclusive: K. Ganesh Made BigBasket and Portea Medical Blockbusters in India, and This is his Unique Life-story" rank="1.0" kind="RELATED" publishDate="Apr 21, 2017, 12:00 PM" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div></div>




 Make In India to Sell In India Gunnerling said that the retailer gives volume commitments to its partners to drive growth in terms of investments and technology.China is the largest sourcing hub for the furniture giant but Gunnerling said that it is possible for that to change over time, as they enter the Indian market next year. Ikea also said that it would double its sourcing from India by 2020 to €600 million, up from its existing base of €318 million, while complying with the 30% local purchase norms as it makes its commercial debut in the Indian economy. The company said it plans to hire 500-700 direct employees for each store. <keyword id="2635043" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sandeep-Sanan">Sandeep Sanan</keyword>, the new business development manager for <keyword id="2635068" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ikea-South-Asia">Ikea South Asia</keyword>, said the company is looking to add suppliers to its existing categories, such as textiles and rugs, and plastics and metal. The company also plans to set up its first distribution centre in Pune. 

 

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Sanan said that while the company has been sourcing from India since 4 decades, the entire process has not been easy, “We have a very good Textile supplier base in India; companies that have global standards and they have been exporting out of India. In furniture industry, it has not been the same case. There are very few companies that have set-ups that include modern technology and machinery. The challenging part has been to find the right supplier that meet our standards or even have the right mindset to attain those standards that are people-friendly and environment-friendly.” Sanan also thinks that the local Indian regulations regarding furniture production are outdated and need to be updated, “We are working with the government to reduce chemical emissions created during furniture production as there are no regulations regarding the permissible chemicals being used.” Mr. Sanan says that the company is looking for a long-term collaboration with the suppliers, “Our average time working with suppliers on a global level today is 12 years. We work at skill development, technology transfers and provide any support to make sure that supplier stay with us for the long-term.” 

 

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 “We are looking to cut costs to make products affordable and accessible to many people. We make sure that we can make economically viable products and if that means sourcing more from countries like India, we will do it. Not just for the country market itself but for the entire range across all our 393 and counting stores,” Gunnerling said.

Exclusive: Ikea in India opens shop in 2018 and might source more from India than China for its global operations, if things work out

IKEA is a consumer brand that anyone can relate to; it's homely, practical and futuristic which makes it very exciting for India because these are the values that compel us before purchasing anyway. 
 
So, when we heard that IKEA is opening its first store in the country next year, not only were we excited, but extremely curious as well. <keyword id="824043" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Business-Insider">Business Insider</keyword> met with <keyword id="3922141" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="mikael-palmqvist">Mikael Palmqvist</keyword>, APAC Head, IKEA Retail to discuss what’s in store, (literally) at the upcoming IKEA store in Hyderabad. 
 
This is how he began - “We are very excited to open our maiden store in the country after textile- sourcing for about 30 years from here. The size of the store, the functionality of the products would be same, and around 5% of the products will be Indianized for meeting customer’s needs like the ‘tava’, idli maker and the pressure cooker.” 
 
Regulations 
 <keyword id="3922143" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="palmqvist">Palmqvist</keyword> emphasizes that IKEA is not a retail company, but a life-at-home company that sells solutions. For him, India is a very important market because not only is every home, room, and activity important, but the sheer size and diversity makes India like a continent for the company. 
 
Palmqvist also says that it took them around 4.5 years to get here but that wasn’t because of the regulations. 
 
He says - ‘’Our stakeholders here have always been supportive; in terms of FDI, e-commerce, and sourcing. Ease of doing business has increased dramatically.’’ 
 
‘Start and adapt’ is IKEA’s motto of the company everywhere, and in India as well. 
 
“We want to understand how the customer accepts IKEA and then go from there. If the customer wants to pay digitally or by cash, we will provide them with options’’ he adds on being asked to comment on the recent demonetization move and its impact on businesses. 
 
Diversity 
 The company also believes in emphasizing on diversity when they hire people and globally they ensure that 50% of the workforce is women. Currently, the company has collaboration with <keyword id="3922144" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="national-institution-of-fashion-technology">National Institution of Fashion Technology</keyword> which contributes design aesthetics to their collections. 
 
In terms of future pricing for their products, they claim to be accessible to all, and not just the middle class. They want to be competitive in pricing under ‘’Home furnishing for all’’. 
 
Online store 
 
E-commerce companies like HomeLane, Urbanladder, Pepperfry, Fabfurnish etc. might pose a threat to the Swedish giant, but Palmqvist’response - ‘’We are happy to build up the furnishing market with these players“ – shows the IKEA team is unfazed by the competition. 
 
Their website IKEA.in will be updated with inventory after the store has opened in full swing. 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Bollywood-actor-Kunal-Kapoor-talks-about-Ketto-his-crowdfunding-startup-which-has-raised-Rs-40-Cr-for-social-causes/articleshow/55753955.cms">ALSO READ: EXCLUSIVE - Bollywood actor Kunal Kapoor talks about Ketto, his crowdfunding startup which has raised Rs 40 Cr for social causes</a> 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/This-LinkedIn-survey-reveals-that-India-has-the-highest-level-of-sales-and-marketing-collaborations/articleshow/55749887.cms">Feeling inspired by the Indian homes</a> that the IKEA team visited, the company plans to make further investments in the country but over a few years, after more stores have opened. After Hyderabad, the company wants to open in <keyword id="57321" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Navi-Mumbai">Navi Mumbai</keyword> and so on. 
 
Biggest cafes 
 When we asked <keyword id="322364" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mikael">Mikael</keyword> to tell us how would an Indian feel after entering the first IKEA store, he said, “WOW! I want them to be surprised by how much we know about what they need. It’s smart and affordable.” The company is also planning to open the biggest restaurants in India with 1000 seats, where customers will get to taste typical Swedish delights. 
 
The company seems to<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/EXCLUSIVE-BigBaskets-co-founder-talks-about-hyperlocal-businesses-and-profitability/articleshow/55752379.cms"> be watching how you live, eat and work to create things</a> that you didn’t even know you needed. We can’t seem to wait to enter the much-hyped store!

You Searched For "IKEA navi mumbai" and got 4 results

Ikea in Mumbai: The Swedish retailer is wooing online shoppers in India's financial capital

Sriram Iyer

Ikea will make its Mumbai debut ‘very shortly’, says India chief as the first store in Hyderabad turns a year old

Sriram Iyer

Exclusive: Ikea in India opens shop in 2018 and might source more from India than China for its global operations, if things work out

Tanya Dubey

EXCLUSIVE: IKEA APAC Head talks about what to expect from the upcoming IKEA store in Hyderabad

Tanya Dubey

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