Giant Swedish furniture and home décor company, IKEA, has announced plans to unveil a new branch in Chiang Mai, which will be smaller and modeled after its Phuket store, according to recent reports.
This new Chiang Mai branch is scheduled to open in 2025 and will mark the fifth IKEA store in Thailand.
Rumors suggest that IKEA is also considering another new store in Rangsit, Pathum Thani province, an area where the company already owns property.
Earlier, Leonie Hoskin, the retail manager for IKEA in Thailand and Vietnam, highlighted the company’s interest in expanding into various Thai cities, with Chiang Mai and Rangsit recognized as promising areas for growth in the north.
Having been operational for nearly 80 years, IKEA entered the Thai market 12 years ago and currently operates four stores in Bangna, Phuket, Bangyai, and Sukhumvit. The brand’s robust performance in Thailand supports its strategy to increase its local footprint.
Ikano Retail, which holds the IKEA franchise for Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Mexico, and the Philippines, reported revenue of about 40 billion baht for the fiscal year 2024 (September 2023 – August 2024), marking a 1.3% increase from the previous year.
In 2024, IKEA Thailand implemented a significant price cut on over 2,400 products, including essentials and bestsellers, and reduced the cost of truck delivery.
In that same year, IKEA Thailand achieved a revenue exceeding 10 billion baht, a 3.9% increase from the prior year, representing the highest growth rate among its regional markets.
Here’s a summary of IKEA’s performance in the region:
– Singapore (3 branches): THB 9.1 billion, up 0.6%
– Malaysia (4 branches): THB 11 billion, down 4.2%
– Thailand (4 branches): over THB 10 billion, up 3.9%
IKEA’s first Thai store opened in Bangna in 2011, boasting 44,000 square meters of space, 9,873 products, and about 450 employees.
The Phuket branch opened in 2015, spans 2,198 square meters, offers the same selection as Bangna, and employs roughly 23 people.
Opened in 2017, the Bangyai store is the largest in Thailand, covering 50,278 square meters, offering 9,864 products, and employing around 450 staff.
The Sukhumvit branch, which opened on December 1, 2023, occupies 12,000 square meters and employs about 180 people. It attracted 120,000 visitors in its first week.
