IKEA is putting eight former stores in China up for sale as the Swedish furniture giant reduces its mainland footprint amid falling sales and a prolonged property crisis.
The properties, located in cities including Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin and Harbin, cover nearly 500,000 square metres in total. Seven of the stores were closed in February, while the IKEA location in Guiyang closed in 2022.
The move comes as IKEA China’s revenue has fallen by nearly 30 percent from its 2019 peak. The decline mirrors China’s wider housing slump, with the market for new homes dropping by more than half since 2021.
IKEA says it is now shifting its strategy away from large-scale expansion.
“We will shift our strategy from broad-scale expansion to targeted, in-depth market cultivation, with Beijing and Shenzhen as key pilot markets,” IKEA said in February.
The company also plans to expand its online business and open ten smaller stores in and around Beijing and Shenzhen over the next two years.
Despite the cuts, IKEA says China remains one of its “most important and strategic markets”. The company currently has 32 stores, two design and order centres and one experience centre in the country.
