Ikea to open a bigger Beijing store
1 June 2003
The Swedish furniture retailer Ikea is to spend US$60m on a new store in Beijing, said the company's China retail manager, Ian Duffy. The new store will be located in Chaoyang district and will open in 2005. Ikea already operates a small outlet in Beijing and a full-sized store in Shanghai.
Duffy said that the privately run firm aimed to have 10 stores in China by 2010. He added that the country would soon account for 5-7 per cent of Ikea's worldwide sales.
The red-chip conglomerate China Resources Enterprises said it was looking to slow down expansion in China this year so as to bring forward profitability. There will be a cutback in new outlet openings and 3,000 workers will be laid off at its supermarkets and hypermarkets in Hong Kong and the mainland to streamline the business.