Update: Ikea’s smaller-format store in Queens opens
This rendering from Ikea shows the design for its new location scheduled to open in Queens, N.Y. later this month.
UPDATE, Jan. 11: Ikea’s new Queens, N.Y., store in Rego Center shopping mall is open to the public starting today. It’s the first store in the U.S. with a new, smaller format, offering a full range of products across 115,000-square-feet of space, which is about half of the usual store size.
“At Ikea, we’re on a journey to transform our business to meet our customers wherever they are and how they like to shop,” said Javier Quiñones, president and chief sustainability officer, Ikea Retail U.S. “As life at home has taken on a new meaning this year for so many people, our customers’ needs and behaviors are changing too, and we hope our new Queens store will serve as a convenient and accessible source of inspiration and home furnishing expertise for New Yorkers.”
Original story, Jan. 8, 2021:
QUEENS, NY – The first smaller-format Ikea store will open later this month in Queens, N.Y., as part of the retailer’s plan to reach more urban consumers.
The pandemic pushed back the opening, which was originally scheduled for summer 2020, according to Curbed New York.
The new 115,000-square-foot space in the Rego Center at the corner of Queens and Junction Boulevards will have pieces made for smaller-space living including compact loveseats, digital tools focused on small-space living, and other products that do not require delivery.
For larger items, Ikea will offer home delivery for a flat fee starting at $49 for anywhere in New York City, and customers can schedule home assembly through TaskRabbit. To boost its delivery capacity, Ikea opened a 975,000-square-foot warehouse on Staten Island.
The store will have a soft opening, with the exact date not being announced, in order to minimize crowds during the pandemic. Standard COVID-19 precautions including face masks and social distancing will be in place.
The newest Queens store is about half the size of the typical Ikea store and offers some items not found in the larger locations.
“This is how we have accelerated in our ambition to become more accessible. It’s never going to be that we go back to only opening big stores,” said Jon Abrahamsson Ring, Ikea’s CEO. “It will be a mix of formats, including smaller stores closer to where people live or work or move.”
