Hyderabad: Over a decade after floating its India plan, IKEA on Thursday finally opened doors to a 4,00,000 square foot store in Hyderabad and it had been a crazy affair for residents on the opening day as there was a stampede-like situation at the newly open store which has 1,000 items, including cutlery and toys for less than Rs 200.
A video of the crowd has surfaced the internet where a massive crowd can be seen rushing into the store.
#India welcomes #IKEA with a scramble pic.twitter.com/kzYNy3Rj21
— NewsMobile (@NewsMobileIndia) August 10, 2018
The nearby roads also witnessed massive traffic jam as the residents headed to the IKEA story to grab deals.
What a terrific traffic it was!! My routine 40min drive from office turned to 2Hr drive. Now every #Hyderabadi knows what @IKEAIndia is and where #Ikea is in #Hyderabad #Telangana #India #traffic #HyderabadWelcomesIkea pic.twitter.com/awDOwM97ef
— Rakhi (@rishi337) August 9, 2018
IKEA’s newly launched India website shows that the popular products looked cheaper than in the United States. The challenge for Ikea is that India has higher taxes on imported goods, therefore the retail price rises but the shoppers is cost-conscious and looks for ‘deals’.
ALSO READ: IKEA to open its first India store in Hyderabad
- Ikea expects to welcome as many as 6 million visitors a year to its 13-acre complex in Hitec City, on the outskirts of Hyderabad.
- Shoppers will browse through approx 7,500 products, of which about 1,000 will sell for less than 200 rupees.
- The white variation of its best-selling Billy bookcase will sell at Rs 3,990, a a fifth of the cost that it sells in the US and the dark-grey Ektorp sofa is priced Rs 21,990 (30% lower).
- It’s the first of 25 stores Ikea plans to open across the nation by 2025. An Ikea is slated to open in early 2019 in Mumbai, followed by stores in urban Bengaluru and Delhi.
- Will have a 1,000-seat restaurant serving a mix of Nordic and local dishes, including biryani for Rs 99 rupees a plate.
- Introduce DIY to India. For those not comfortable with the idea it has partnered with local start-up, UrbanClap, and hired 150 staff to offer paid delivery and assembly options
Its opening, set for July 19, was postponed by three weeks to give the store more time to “live up to its expected quality commitments towards customers and coworkers,” according to a statement.
India’s FDI in single-brand retail regulation dictates Ikea must source at least 30% of materials locally within five years of starting operation.
IKEA said on Wednesday it has spent half the Rs 10,500 crore earmarked for India investment and plans to spend Rs 1000 crore set up each store.