The retail chain IKEA has opened its space to other retailers. The first tenant will be the French sports giant Decathlon, which will open its sales point in the IKEA store in Greenwich, London. The partnership aims to attract more customers. Experts indicate that such cooperation could be the beginning of a new trend in British retail.
First Decathlon in IKEA
The French sports retail chain Decathlon will open its outlet in the IKEA store in Greenwich, London, which is a novelty for the British market.
IKEA's New Business Model
IKEA is opening part of its retail space to external tenants to increase customer traffic and diversify its offering.
Response to Retail Challenges
The partnership is a response to changing consumer shopping habits and growing competition in the UK retail sector.
Potential for Further Collaborations
Market experts do not rule out that similar partnerships will be developed in other IKEA locations, and even with other retailers.
The Swedish furniture giant IKEA has decided on an unusual step in its UK strategy, opening part of the floor space in its store in London's Greenwich district to an external tenant. The first partner will be the French sports retailer Decathlon. The new sports store is to be created within the existing IKEA building, forming an unusual retail hybrid. This decision fits into a broader trend in the British retail market, where large retail spaces are seeking new ways to attract customers and revive sales. Since the 1990s, with the expansion of large shopping malls and the later development of online commerce, traditional large brick-and-mortar stores have been struggling with declining footfall. In response to this challenge, some chains are testing concepts of sharing space with complementary industries. For IKEA, whose UK stores are typically standalone, huge facilities on city outskirts, this is an experiment with a new business model. The cooperation is mutually beneficial. For Decathlon, it is an opportunity to reach new customers in a convenient location, without the high costs of building a new facility from scratch. For IKEA, the presence of a popular sports brand is intended to increase the attractiveness of the entire facility as a shopping destination and extend the time customers spend on the store premises. Experts indicate that if the experiment in Greenwich succeeds, similar solutions could appear in other UK locations of the Swedish conglomerate. „We're seeing a growing need for diversification among big-box retailers to attract consumers. Such partnerships could become more common as stores look to optimize their use of space.” — Retail market expert quoted by Reuters This is not the first such initiative by IKEA, which has already tested hosting cafes or service points in other countries, but introducing a large, competitive retailer under its own roof constitutes a significant strategic move.