When Swedish furniture retailer IKEA entered India in August 2018, every possible prediction was made—smaller furniture retailers will shut shop; the furniture market will become more organised; furniture sales, typically slow-moving, will soar…
Almost a year since, none of this has happened.
Instead, IKEA has realised India is an anomaly. Famous the world over for its space-saving and trendy furniture, furniture isn’t even IKEA’s most popular category in India—mattresses and cutlery sell faster at its Hyderabad store. Furniture isn’t a high-frequency category in India; people wait 4-5 years between purchases and, as Jesper Brodin, IKEA group CEO, said in an interview: Indians typically buy furniture when moving houses or having a child.