IKEA Announces Plans To Open Store

17th February 2005

IKEA announces plans to open a new store in Milton Keynes

Today, IKEA announces plans to open a new store in Milton Keynes. IKEA is hopeful that this store, which will create 400 jobs for the local community, will be opening at the beginning of 2006. The IKEA site is part of the Denbigh stadium development south of Milton Keynes city centre.

Scott Cordrey, UK Property Manager, says "IKEA is very excited about coming to Milton Keynes. IKEA fans are constantly telling us they want a store here and we are delighted to be able to finally answer that call. This is consistent with our strategy to bring IKEA closer to our wide spread customer base, reducing travel time and taking trading pressure off our existing stores. We have been very happy with the positive working relationship we have been able to establish with the stadium site developers Inter MK and the Local Authority which has made this development possible."

• IKEA is the world's largest furniture retailer and the UK is IKEA's second largest market.
• Almost 286m people visited an IKEA store worldwide last year. In the UK, 33 million people visited IKEA last year.
• The vast majority of the 400 jobs will come from the local community; which will include sales jobs, skilled chefs, engineers, administrators, designers, carpenters and customer service staff.
• IKEA believes in supporting the local community.
• The UK's first IKEA store was opened in Warrington in 1987. Other UK stores are located at Brent Park, Croydon, Edmonton, Thurrock, Wednesbury [nr Birmingham], Gateshead, Leeds, Nottingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
• IKEA's latest store opened in Edmonton on the 1 0^th February 2005