Ikea breaks ground for St. Louis store

Ikea representatives and guests break ground on the 380,000-square-foot store coming to St. Louis next year.

Ikea broke ground Tuesday on its planned 380,000-square-foot store scheduled to open here in the fall of 2015.

The store, along the northern side of Interstate 64 and Vandeventer Avenue, will sit on about 21 acres and include features consumers and the home furnishings industry have come to expect from the Swedish home furnishings giant — including nearly 10,000 items for sale, 50 room settings, three model home interiors, a supervised play area and a 450-seat restaurant serving Swedish specialties and other items. There will also be 1,300 parking spaces.

In a release, the retailer said it will evaluate the potential for on-site power generation to complement its goal of a renewable energy presence at nearly 90% of its U.S. locations.

Another sustainability move includes working with Habitat for Humanity St. Louis and other groups to recycle and salvage as much of the existing buildings’ equipment and material as possible.

“This location will help bring the unique Ikea family-friendly shopping experience closer to many St. Louis-area customers who currently can only shop at Ikea stores elsewhere or online,” said Rob Olson, Ikea U.S. chief financial officer. “The store also will attract new customers from Missouri, Illinois and beyond who value good design, good function and affordable prices, but have not yet had the chance to shop at an Ikea store.”

Ikea’s Conshohocken, Pa.-based U.S. operations are No. 2 on Furniture/Today’s Top 100 with estimated furniture, bedding and accessories sales of $2.69 billion at 38 stores for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31. Total revenues are estimated at $4.37 billion.

The retailer will open a store in greater Miami this summer and one in the Kansas City area this fall. Plans for the St. Louis store were first reported late last year.

Source: Home Textiles Today