World number-one furniture retailer Ikea is hoping the market will improve next year from a decline in consumer spending on furnishing their homes, one of its senior leaders told AFP.
During a recent visit to Paris to visit the Swedish chain's new city-centre shop, Inter Ikea chief Jon Abrahamsson Ring told AFP that 2025 is likely to be "challenging".
Inter Ikea is the main holding company that manages the brand concept and product design among other things.
France is the company's third biggest market following Germany and the United States. The French furniture market declined by 5.1 percent in 2024, according to the Institute of Furniture Studies and Forecasting.
Abrahamsson Ring said that whether in France or elsewhere it has been a tough period for furniture retailers.Â
"For the last two years, it's been a shrinking home furnishing spend across all our 63 markets."Â
Ikea is "very much looking forward to 2026", he said.
Ikea, which has an annual revenue of around $47 billion, is continuing to prioritise low prices and physical sales despite a boom in online shopping, he explained.
Online shopping accounted for 26 percent of its total sales in the 2024 fiscal year ending in August, compared to seven percent in 2019.
Meanwhile, Ikea's stores welcomed 899 million visitors in the 2024 fiscal year, a figure which is increasing.
Some 92 percent of Ikea customers shop both online and in-store, Abrahamsson Ring said.Â
"They are sitting at home, they do research online, they go to a store because they want to sit on a sofa, or lay on a bed, or touch something, and maybe talk to a" salesperson, he said.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.
...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF CENTRAL ALABAMA
ON SATURDAY...
...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS
EVENING...
* WINDS...Northeast 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph.
* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 21 percent.
* IMPACTS...The combination of a dry air mass and windy
conditions will result in critical fire weather conditions.
Outdoor burning is not recommended.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions
are either occurring now....or will shortly. A combination of
strong winds...low relative humidity...and warm temperatures can
contribute to extreme fire behavior.
&&
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.