IKEA is rolling up its “flat-pack” sleeves and dares to tread where others have hung up a ‘closed’ sign for good —in the heart of San Francisco’s downtown district. A mere three years after snapping up a lonely, ghost-town-like mall in the city’s Mid-Market corridor, IKEA flung its doors open just last week. SF’s downtown district, which has seen better days, is not just hollowed out, but practically echoes with the absence of workers. Issues like crime, homelessness, and drug abuse have turned this once-bustling district into a troubled neighborhood.
Thanks for Taking A Chance On [Us] with the Swedish theme! When All Is Said And Done my Waterloo with flat pack is always time spent assembling. Instead of Why Did It Have To Be Me I definitely need to Ring Ring those Task Rabbits and hope that interface improves.
Hi Professor. This was one of the most entertaining yet informative reads! Curious if they are still going to be charging the same hefty delivery fee for these urban centers, as that was a major deterrent for me as a consumer. I ended up using wayfair due to free delivery (understanding it might be baked into the prices) and set up task rabbit separately to help with assembly. Also, will be interesting to see if the SKUs at the city center stores will be geared more towards smaller items / decor pieces etc. to promote more frequent but smaller purchases.
First: thanks for the kind words! I think the SKU's are going to be tailored, based on initial feedback I have heard. The hefty delivery fee, at least in my opinion, was a way to deter customers from doing it. But they will have to come around and make it closer to industry standards if they want to continue and be relevant via any online channel.
A personal perspective: I was at the SF grand opening, which had hundreds of people lined up in advance to enter. It was really nice to have this jolt of positive energy on Market St! I was pleasantly surprised with how well organized everything was, with the crowds processed quickly and moving efficiently through the store.
City-dwelling customers certainly have different needs than IKEA's typical customers, and the product selection and layout well reflected this. A good example is their live houseplant selection at great prices. (Riding home on the Muni carrying my new dragon tree, several strangers approached with compliments and questions.) For IKEA's sake and that of a mid-Market revival, I'm hoping this store makes "Money, Money, Money" :-)
Wondering if owning real estate in a commercially bleaker SF downtown, in current circumstances, is a good idea. Does Ikea own most of the store real estates as of today?
Also, must mention I noticed that your narrative in this article is much more creative and visual. Loved it.
My larger concern for IKEA here is that median income in SF is very very high, and I’m not sure how big the market is for IKEA furniture. Maybe makes more sense to do this in a large college town?
IKEA customers are between 24 and 34, so not sure about college towns, but definitely the income in SF is higher than that of the average IKEA customer.
Thanks for Taking A Chance On [Us] with the Swedish theme! When All Is Said And Done my Waterloo with flat pack is always time spent assembling. Instead of Why Did It Have To Be Me I definitely need to Ring Ring those Task Rabbits and hope that interface improves.
First: you are absolutely the winner! Douze Pointe (to use the Eurovision parlance).
And I also agree. I hate assembling these. Luckily for me, my better half is also much much better in assembling these.
Hi Professor. This was one of the most entertaining yet informative reads! Curious if they are still going to be charging the same hefty delivery fee for these urban centers, as that was a major deterrent for me as a consumer. I ended up using wayfair due to free delivery (understanding it might be baked into the prices) and set up task rabbit separately to help with assembly. Also, will be interesting to see if the SKUs at the city center stores will be geared more towards smaller items / decor pieces etc. to promote more frequent but smaller purchases.
First: thanks for the kind words! I think the SKU's are going to be tailored, based on initial feedback I have heard. The hefty delivery fee, at least in my opinion, was a way to deter customers from doing it. But they will have to come around and make it closer to industry standards if they want to continue and be relevant via any online channel.
A personal perspective: I was at the SF grand opening, which had hundreds of people lined up in advance to enter. It was really nice to have this jolt of positive energy on Market St! I was pleasantly surprised with how well organized everything was, with the crowds processed quickly and moving efficiently through the store.
City-dwelling customers certainly have different needs than IKEA's typical customers, and the product selection and layout well reflected this. A good example is their live houseplant selection at great prices. (Riding home on the Muni carrying my new dragon tree, several strangers approached with compliments and questions.) For IKEA's sake and that of a mid-Market revival, I'm hoping this store makes "Money, Money, Money" :-)
That's great to hear. Thanks for sharing! and for keeping the musical theme :)
Hello Sir. Enriching read as always.
Wondering if owning real estate in a commercially bleaker SF downtown, in current circumstances, is a good idea. Does Ikea own most of the store real estates as of today?
Also, must mention I noticed that your narrative in this article is much more creative and visual. Loved it.
I am not sure if they own all of their real estate, but I think they do more and more (https://www.ingka.com/news/ingka-investments-signs-agreement-to-acquire-real-estate-for-ikea-retail-in-the-heart-of-paris/). I agree: owning real estate in the middle of SF might not be the best strategy. PS: Thanks for the kind words about the narrative. I am experimenting with different tones.
My larger concern for IKEA here is that median income in SF is very very high, and I’m not sure how big the market is for IKEA furniture. Maybe makes more sense to do this in a large college town?
IKEA customers are between 24 and 34, so not sure about college towns, but definitely the income in SF is higher than that of the average IKEA customer.
Mamma Mia! What a fun and informative read