Ikea is set to finally open the doors to its Sylvia Park store this Thursday, December 4.
While fans are excitedly preparing to stuff their Ikea frakta bags with Swedish homeware goods, the inside of the store, prices and actual product range have remained a mystery.
Today, the Herald has been given a first look inside the 34,000sq m retail hub, seven years in the making.
Retail NZ’s chief executive told Herald NOW’s Ryan Bridge she expected the opening of the new mega store to be a real drawcard for shoppers ahead of Christmas.
“There’s obviously going to be some initial interest ... going into Ikea because it’s taken them eight years to get to this point about opening,” said Carolyn Young.
“I think for that Auckland community, we’ll have an initial big impact.
“And then it will settle down where people will work out what it is that they like about going to Ikea, and what is they maybe don’t like, and that they prefer from their local stores that they’ve been going to for many years.”
While it might temporarily divert some customers away from local stores, it would provide more options for Kiwis at a time when homeware and household goods was experiencing steady growth.
Brightly coloured displays and simulated home environments have been set up throughout Ikea’s flagship store to help Kiwi shoppers visualise how products could look in their own abode.
A large yellow wall greets shoppers as they ascend to the first-floor showroom, and the Swedish Food Market - home to a variety of take-home goods - has been pre-emptively filled ahead of opening day.
Prices for homeware items include $24.99 for a Dvala fitted queen sheet, $8.99 for storage boxes and $26.99 for a pink cushion set.
Larger products stray on the dear side, with the Kivik two-seat sofa priced at $649 and the storage-savvy Malm bed frame being sold for $699.
Ikea announced plans to open its first Aotearoa store in 2018 and the Auckland store is set to be the Scandinavian company’s furthest outpost from its Swedish base.
The store will give New Zealand shoppers the full Ikea experience, with living room, kitchen and bedroom installations, a children’s play area, restaurant, grab-and-go food market and self-service warehouse.
It will also have click-and-collect facilities for the over 7500 products available for purchase.
A 426-seat Swedish restaurant will offer globally loved dishes alongside a selection of New Zealand‑only menu items.
Construction of the store began in June 2023 and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon previously told the Herald Ikea’s arrival was exciting for New Zealand and a positive sign for foreign investment.
The Swedish retailer originally planned to hire 400 workers, but later increased that to 500 to meet the demands of the store. In September, Ikea said it had received 25,000 applications for those positions.
In October, Ikea’s parent company, Ingka Investments, bought 10,000ha of production forestry in Northland.
Ikea currently operates in 31 other countries.
