IKEA is betting big on India. The Swedish furniture and home furnishing retailer may more than double its investment in India to over Rs 20,000 crore over the next five years, as per a Reuters report.
The report quoted Ikea’s top executive and stated that the fresh capital will take IKEA’s total committed investment in India beyond Rs 20,000 crore ($2.2 billion). According to Reuters, IKEA also plans to expand its store network to 30 outlets and significantly scale up exports from the country. The retailer will also begin accepting online orders in four additional cities, including Chennai and Coimbatore, even before opening physical stores there, a first for IKEA globally.
‘India is very strong’
“India is not a large IKEA country yet, but the belief in India is very strong that it will be one of our top markets,” Patrik Antoni, chief executive of IKEA India, said in the interview with Reuters.
The renewed push comes as IKEA’s India business gathers momentum after several years of slow ramp-up. As per a report by Financial Express, the company’s sales rose 6% to Rs 1,861 crore in FY25, according to its latest disclosures, while Ebitda excluding fixed costs grew 12% year-on-year. The retailer expects to turn profitable in India within two years, aided by wider city coverage and faster growth in online sales.
IKEA’s India foray
IKEA entered India in 2018 with its first store in Hyderabad, followed by Navi Mumbai in 2020, and has since expanded through digital channels into northern India. Online sales grew 34% in FY25, with the company serving nearly 110 million customers across channels during the year.
While higher US tariffs on Indian goods have forced many exporters to seek new markets, Antoni said IKEA’s Indian suppliers have been largely unaffected, as the brand ships more products to Europe and other regions.
India’s home furnishing market is projected to reach $48 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual rate of 8.7%, according to the company. “We see a long-term opportunity to make home furnishing more affordable, accessible and sustainable for many people,” Antoni told Financial Express. Furniture continues to lead IKEA India’s sales, while its business-to-business segment contributes 19% of revenue and food about 10%.