IKEA to double Canadian stores, boost online services

IKEA plans to double its number of stores in Canada over the next 10 years after seeing in-store visits increase by four per cent in the last year.

The Swedish-based home goods and furniture retailer has been in Canada for 40 years, but has just 12 stores.

IkeaCanada president Stefan Sjostrand outlined an expansion plan for Canada that paired online and bricks-and-mortar initiatives to 2026.

Online sales have jumped 40 per cent to $103 million in the past year, he said, while visits to the IKEA website totalled 75 million.

Online pickup points

IKEA is attempting to make online ordering easier by adding five new pickup and order points in Quebec City and in four Ontario cities London, St. Catharines, Whitby and Windsor.

The Quebec City and London pickup points, where customers can collect goods ordered online, will open by December.

Sjostrand said consumers are drawn to IKEA's warehouse-like stores for ideas about home decorating so bricks-and-mortar retail will continue to be important. The stores have had about 26 million visitors this year.

In its first report dedicated just to its Canadian operations, the retailer said Canadian sales rose more than 10 per cent to $1.79 billion in the 2014-15 fiscal year ending Aug. 31.

The retailer also has a commitment to greater sustainability and has installed free electric vehicle charging stations at each of its locations across Canada and begun operations of a 20-turbine wind farm at Pincher Creek in southern Alberta.