IKEA ditches food hall at Melbourne’s Highpoint Shopping Centre
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Radical change is coming to IKEA Australia as furniture giant digs a fan favorite
- IKEA Australia has dumped its dining room in its new concept store in Melbourne
- Furniture giant opened 300 square meter location in Highpoint Shopping Center
- The shop wasn’t big enough for the staff to sell their favorite Swedish meatballs
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IKEA Australia abandons its favorite dining room and its iconic Swedish meatballs for a new, slimmed-down store layout.
The furniture giant launched its ‘plan and order point’ concept store at the Highpoint Shopping Center in Melbourne’s west on Wednesday.
The new store traded in its typical 30,000-square-foot warehouse-like layout and winding aisles for a much smaller 300-square-foot design.
IKEA Australia ditched its fan-favorite dining room for a new, slimmed-down store layout (stock image)
The small layout means there is no room for the furniture giant to sell its Swedish meatballs in a sign that the dish should not be sold in future concept stores (stock image)
Customers can speak directly with a representative to work out more complicated interior designs and then order the items for collection or delivery.
The small layout leaves no room for the furniture giant to sell its Swedish meatballs as a sign that the dish should not be sold in future concept stores.
IKEA Australia chief executive Mirja Viinanen said the aim of the new layout was to create convenience for the customer.
‘We sell things in channels’ [offline or online]but the customer doesn’t think in channels,” she said Sydney Morning Herald.
‘It is not the case that the customer only comes to the planning and ordering point.
‘People get in, enjoy the planning system – then they can go to the store too.’
IKEA Australia has not announced whether more concept stores will appear in the future.
Ms Viinanen said a decision will be made subject to the success of the new Melbourne location.
“We’ll see how successful we are, and then we’ll have to figure out the next step,” she said.
Daily Mail Australia contacted IKEA for comment.
IKEA Australia chief executive Mirja Viinanen said the aim of the new layout was to create convenience for the customer (stock image)