Swedish furniture retail giant Ikea is increasing its investment in China by $300 million and plans to more than double its number of stores in China by 2015, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The store has served many customers as a local hang-out, where many use the store as a napping or dining venue. Ikea hopes to convert these visitors into furniture buyers as the economy continues to transform.
The home-furnishings market is projected to grow 17 percent this year in China, the world’s fastest-growing major economy—a transformation which has taken 300 million citizens out of poverty during the past 30 years.
"Many Chinese have purchased apartments and wanted to decorate them over the last few years, which helped the home- furnishings category expand,” said Torsten Stocker, a partner at Monitor Group, a consulting company in Shanghai.
