Ikea’s ecommerce sales grew quickly in a year in which the company opened more city centre stores, invested in its home delivery network and developed its digital capabilities.
Sales on Ikea.com grew by 46% over the year, to account for 11% of total Ikea retail sales of €36.7bn in its 2019 financial year. That’s 5% up on the previous year. The retailer saw 2.6bn visitors to its website – up by almost 10% on the previous year, while in-store visits stood steady at 839m.
Over the last year, the retailer, a Top250 retailer in IRUK Top500 research, invested across sales channels. It opened 11 smaller stores in locations such as city centres, as well as seven of its traditional big box stores. It has opened planning studios in cities including Moscow, New York, Paris and London, and is planning more stores in Copenhagen, Shanghai and Tokyo.
Online it has launched a new Ikea app, to enable shoppers to find and buy Ikea products.
“We have had a really positive year,” said said Jesper Brodin, chief executive of the Ingka Group. “While going through one of the biggest transformations in our history, we’ve maintained strong performance across our business, thanks to all the amazing colleagues across the IKEA world, who continue to show leadership and entrepreneurship every day. We have a simple, yet powerful vision, to create a better everyday life for the many people, that we all want to deliver to, which is truly visible this year.”
The retailer says it will make sustainability key to its retail business, and directly overseen by each country retail manager in their additional role of country chief sustainability officer. It has invested in renewable energy in order to generate as much as it consumes.
Brodin added: “We need to grow in a responsible way and are going further and faster in demonstrating business success through long-term sustainable growth. It is our generations’ biggest responsibility and we know that our future success depends on our ability to make a positive impact on people and the planet, which is why we are integrating sustainability into every aspect of our retail operations.”
Image courtesy of Ikea
