Urban First For IKEA As It Opens Highest Profile Store In The World

After over four long years shuttered, London’s iconic Topshop store is back but not with the fashion retailer’s name upon it – though rumors of a retail return for Topshop do abound – but as an IKEA.

Right in the heart of London’s West End the much-awaited IKEA Oxford Street store debuted on May 1, following a very lengthy renovation of the Grade II listed building at 214 Oxford Street which sits on the intersection of Oxford Street and Regent Street.

It’s the second urban store to be opened in London by IKEA and when it threw open its stores this morning there were large crowds outside gathered to see just what the Swedish furniture and homewares retailer could cram onto a footprint far smaller than its huge out-of-town big box units and also catering for an audience that will largely live in smaller homes and will be in need of space saving solutions.

So just what can shoppers expect? Well the Tardis-like IKEA actually spans three floors of the 239,000-square-foot, seven-story building, with offices above, and it has two other retail tenants within the block it owns. Nike is revamping its famous Nike Town and will temporarily take over Microsoft’s vacated store, which sits diagonally opposite and next to Apple’s store. A 4,600-square-foot Space NK will also join the line-up as a new tenant.

And perhaps the biggest surprise is that despite being on a smaller footplate and in the middle of a city, the IKEA experience feels remarkably familiar – right down to the one system around room sets, the market area and, of course, a deli serving Swedish meatballs and other IKEA favorites.

IKEA Opens In Iconic Site

Topshop had owned the historic building from 1992 and its store earned legendary status among its youthful fan base, but when it closed its doors in January 2021 IKEA quickly acquired it for a veritable bargain at just over $500 million, working for four years to transform the building. While IKEA has not shared much on the reasons for the delays hoding up the opening up the store, it’s fair to imagine that the building was not in great shape when it bought it.

The 62,400-square-foot store space is similar in size to its other urban IKEA in west London borough Hammersmith, which acts as the anchor to a shopping center acquired by IKEA’s property sister business Ingka Centers andreinvented as the Livat centre.

Oxford Circus is divided into a first floor of edited products, then two basement floors house the traditional room sets, design services, plus a 130-seater Swedish deli and take-out offer.

The ground floor is the smallest and merchandising has been deliberately kept at low levels to showcase the curated products – but it feels like a luxury in a high rent location and it would be no surprise to see this element change.

By contrast, the lower floors feel far more familiar and the operation is slick, well presented and sure to be a huge hit with IKEA fans.

The Oxford Street store also features a Live Studio for broadcasting or events, plus a ‘Re-Shop’ and ‘Re-Use’ section for second-life, second-hand and discontinued IKEA products, while a deliver service will also be available.

IKEA Pledges To Store Growth

It brings IKEA’s U.K. portfolio to 21 full size stores, two city stores, one order and collection and three plan and order points and the retailer has already pledged that it is committed to opening more outlets in the U.K., with plans for a major new site this summer in Brighton at the Churchill Square shopping center it acquired in late 2023 and smaller outlets in Norwich, Chester and Harlow.

It’s most recent urban projects have been in the U.S. and it has made no secret of its desire to keep exapnding in North America and with larger formats in Asia.

The high profile opening comes at a time when retail broker Savills has said that Oxford Street, one of the major casualties of the pandemic as retailers deserted the street in their droves, is effectively full, with a wave of new brands due to open or already trading having just opened, including Abercrombie & Fitch, New Balance, Mango, Moss Bros, Uniqlo, Foot Asylum, Holland & Barrett, Pandora, and Puma, which could bring vacancies down to less than 1%.

For now though the story is all about IKEA and its most high profile and urban location anywhere in the world. Meatball and a wardrobe anybody?