IKEA franchisee in Southeast Asia and Mexico grows turnover 3.3% during tough year

MANILA – Ikano Retail, the IKEA franchisee that is bringing Swedish home furnishings and the world’s largest IKEA store to the Philippines, posted PHP 42 billion in turnover in four markets during its last financial year – up 3.3% in a year marred by COVID closures and turbulent times for the company’s shopping center business.

Ikano Retail is one of 12 IKEA franchisees around the world, with 11 IKEA stores and five IKEA-anchored shopping centers in its portfolio. It operates in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Mexico, and turnover from its IKEA stores contributes to the total result to be reported Thursday (1300 CET) by the global IKEA franchisor, Inter IKEA Group.

“We lost 17% of our trading days, faced the worst supply challenges in our history and contended with limits on food operations and further restrictions,’’ said Ikano Retail CEO Christian Rojkjaer. “But, even amid COVID, we executed expansion plans, grew our e-commerce sales by 57% and safeguarded jobs. Most importantly, we continued to help our customers make life at home better.”

Much of the growth comes from Singapore and Mexico where the company opened new stores. In Singapore, Ikano opened IKEA Jurong – Southeast Asia’s first small-format IKEA store, selling the full range through digital solutions and multi-skilled co-workers. In Mexico City, Ikano opened the first IKEA in Latin America and clocked almost 15 million visits to its IKEA Oceania store and website combined. Ikano also entered the home renovation and design business, with new IKEA Planning Studios in Thailand and Singapore. Ikano also relaunched IKEA for Business in Southeast Asia to better serve small enterprises in setting up Swedish-inspired office solutions, shops and more.

Ikano invested to defend its offer at Ikano Centres in Malaysia and Thailand, supporting our tenants through tough times and securing a healthy lease rate of 92% in a challenging retail landscape. “We made sure that our centers continue to be meeting places for the many,’’ says Mr. Rojkjaer, ‘’offering a safe and fun day out as our economies open up and learn to live with COVID.”

During a second pandemic year, many people turned to IKEA to set up workspaces, playrooms and kitchens. In the Philippines, Ikano recently started operating e-commerce, created its first IKEA pop-up at SM Mall of Asia and designed a reality TV set for a gaming program. All this before IKEA Pasay City opens (hold tight for more news on our opening date).

Check out the Ikano Retail highlights reel from the 2021 financial year (Sep 2020 to Aug 2021).

Fast Facts:

September 1, 2020 – August 31, 2021

* 113 million visits to IKEA websites in Ikano Retail markets, including 1 million in the Philippines

* 864,000 online orders placed in four markets, up 64.5% from the year before

* PHP 7.7b total e-commerce sales in Ikano Retail markets, up 57% from the last financial year

* 29,794 solar panels on the rooftops of IKEA stores and Ikano Centres

* 2.9 million IKEA Family loyalty club members four active markets, including 206,000 in the Philippines

* 4,321 co-workers across Ikano Retail – including 311 in the Philippines, with more to come

Ikano’s IKEA sales contribute to the total result reported Thursday, 14 October at 13:00 CET by Inter-IKEA Group, the global IKEA franchisor. For more information, please download the PDF version of this report.

See the global newsroom here: https://about.ikea.com/newsroom.