Interior view of the IKEA Gwangmyeong store in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, at 2 p.m. March 3 / Korea Times photo by Lee So-ra
It is Tuesday afternoon at IKEA’s Gwangmyeong store on the outskirts of Seoul. On the second floor, Lee, a man in his 30s visiting with his wife and 1-year-old child, is busy taking photos of furniture displays.
He says he came not to shop, but to gather ideas for decorating his baby’s room.
“I’ll probably look online first to see if there are cheaper options with similar designs,” Lee said. “I’m not buying anything today.”
His remark reflects the subdued atmosphere inside the store. Aside from office workers using laptops and groups of mothers gathered in the second floor restaurant, only a handful of shoppers walk through the showroom.
Most are seen placing small “loss leader” items costing less than 30,000 won ($20) in their carts, or simply taking photos of the furniture on display. There is little sign that shoppers intend to purchase IKEA’s core products — furniture.
The scene is far from the crowds that packed the store when it first opened in December 2014, when eager customers lined up outside. Even allowing for the passage of time, the quiet atmosphere does little to match IKEA’s image as a global furniture giant.
When IKEA first entered Korea, it put the domestic furniture industry on edge. In its first year of operation in fiscal 2015, the Gwangmyeong store generated 308 billion won in revenue — despite being the company’s only outlet in the country at the time, immediately placing IKEA third in the industry. The company started to expand its footprint, opening new stores roughly every two years.
But starting in 2022, both sales and profits began to decline. Years of sluggish performance have raised concerns, with rumors of IKEA’s possible withdrawal from the Korean market circulating online.
The rumors remain unfounded. But they suggest warning signs are emerging both inside and outside the company.
Source: Korea Times News
