Furniture retail giant IKEA today announced plans to open its first New Zealand store in Auckland.
The store, and an online shopping platform, are planned for the next few years.
IKEA also announced it will open a pop-up store before the real thing to give consumers a taste of what’s to come.
The announcement was made by the company's executives at a high-profile event in Auckland today.
Ingka Group CEO Jesper Brodin said he was looking forward to bringing the "full IKEA experience" to New Zealand, starting in Auckland.
The news follows the company’s announcement last month granting Ingka Group, the largest IKEA franchisee in the world, franchise rights in New Zealand by Inter IKEA Systems B.V.
"As a leader in home furnishings globally, we hope to be a partner in life for the many IKEA fans, providing inspiration and solutions to create a better everyday life at home," Mr Brodin said.
"We look to bring the great work we achieve globally in our sustainability initiatives, the IKEA supply chain and, most importantly, our local team of co-workers to ensure a positive impact across every touch point of our business.”
IKEA reaches 1.2 billion customers in more than 50 markets through a combination of IKEA stores, ecommerce and pick-up and order points.
Ingka Group currently operates the IKEA business in 30 markets around the world. This includes ecommerce, 367 stores and other sales channels.
New Zealand consumers will soon have access to 7000 products from the brand, the company said in a statement.
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