IKEA gets 23,000 acre land in Navi Mumbai, to open 400,00 sqt feet store

IKEA will build a 400,000 square feet in Mumbai and has received a land parcel for the same, the Swedish furniture retailer said on Friday.

The 23-acre site in Navi Mumbai is the second land parcel for IKEA in the country with the first being in Hyderabad.

"Maharashtra is one of the most important markets for IKEA. Along with setting up retail stores, we will expand our supplier landscape and grow local sourcing as much as possible," Juvencio Maeztu, chief executive officer at IKEA India told Economic Times.

According to Maeztu, each IKEA store will employ 500-700 workers directly and another 1,500 indirectly, engaged in providing services. "We are committed to having 50% women in our organisation at all levels and giving equal opportunities to all," he said.

IKEA, which received government approval for its Rs 10,500 crore proposal to open fully owned retail stores in the country in 2013, plans to open 25 stores by 2025 in nine Indian cities including Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi-NCR. It recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Haryana government and said it will invest an estimated Rs 2,000 crore to open stores in the state.

The company expects its Navi Mumbai store to attract more than 5 million visitors each year once it's operational.

IKEA has been sourcing from India for the last 30 years and it plans to double its sourcing volumes by 2020. Through it 50 suppliers, IKEA today employs 45,000 people directly and about 400,000 in the extended supply chain. It has recently organized three "Make More in India" campaigns, including one in Mumbai to look for new suppliers.