Milestone for Ikea as it adds London Oxford Street to stores map with focus on accessibility and sustainability

Ikea will tomorrow open the doors of its Oxford Street, London store.

Following an extensive renovation of the Grade II listed building at 214 Oxford Street by Ingka Investments, the investment arm of Ingka Group, Ikea will span three floors of the seven-storey location.

The opening is pitched as a milestone in the retailer's strategy to increase its presence in city centres and expand with smaller formats, increasing accessibility for customers across the UK.

Peter Jelkeby, CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer, Ikea UK, says: “Tomorrow, we will celebrate our new home on Oxford Street, a milestone in our journey to becoming more accessible. It will be an Ikea many know and love, with some new features exclusive to this iconic city centre store. Created in collaboration with real voices and with Londoners in mind, opening our doors is a landmark moment following a meticulous renovation and we are truly excited to share it.”

Key features include:

• Curated shops – On the ground floor are three ‘Curated Shops’; shopping edits created by Londoners that reflect and celebrate the character and diversity of the city’s residents. Multiple times a year, new Londoners will be invited to curate their own product selection.

• New (and used) spaces – In a global first for Ikea, the Oxford Street store will feature a 25 m2 Live Studio with broadcasting capabilities. The space will enable Ikea to feature and host interactive experiences and exhibitions for locally relevant events. The new store will also have a Re-Shop and Re-Use section, an area to shop second life, second-hand and discontinued Ikea products.

• Delivery services – Small furniture items will be available to take home from the store immediately, with around 3,500 products ready to go. For larger items, shoppers can order from a 10,000 strong product range, to be delivered directly to their home or to one of Ikea's numerous pick-up points across the city.

Tolga Öncü, Ingka Retail Manager (COO) at Ikea Retail (Ingka Group), says: “Adding Oxford Street to the Ikea map is a special moment for us. This store, on one of the busiest and most well known streets in the world, exemplifies our ambition to innovate our retail presence and bring Ikea to where our customers live, work, and socialise. Offering our well designed and affordable products to more people in city centres across the globe remains our way forward.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, says: “It's fantastic news that Ikea is opening a new flagship store on Oxford Street. It's a huge vote of confidence in London, in our economy and in our plans to rejuvenate Oxford Street and unlock its true potential. Oxford Street is one of the most famous shopping destinations in the world and we want to give it a new lease of life.”

“This involves attracting brilliant companies like IKEA, which will help to create new jobs and increase footfall. We have developed bold proposals to pedestrianise Oxford Street and to establish it as a global leader for shopping, leisure and outdoor events. The consultation on these plans closes on 2nd May so I encourage everyone to have their say.” 

Cllr Geoff Barraclough, Westminster City Council Cabinet Member for Planning and Economic Development, comments: "We are thrilled to welcome the opening of Ikea on Oxford Street, breathing new life into Westminster’s vibrant retail landscape. This new store brings yet another great global brand to the nation’s high street, diversifies the retail offer and will help generate footfall that benefits all traders in the West End.”

“We’re particularly proud that the Westminster Council’s Employment Service worked with Ikea to recruit local people to jobs at the new outlet. We look forward to seeing the positive impact the store will have on the local economy and will continue to support emerging businesses and established brands to Oxford Street and across the city.” 

Dee Corsi, CEO, New West End Company, says: “Oxford Street has been long recognised as the nation’s high street, and for good reason. More than just a place to shop, it’s a destination - a place where people come to spend the day, explore, and enjoy everything the area has to offer. It has also been undergoing an exciting transformation over the last 18 months. The much anticipated arrival of Ikea is an important milestone in that evolution, reinforcing the street’s global reputation as an iconic retail destination.”  

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Physical stores will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards, which are now open for entries, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants were revealed during an event which took place at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London on 21st November, and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by comedian Lucy Porter.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “The event is now into its sixth year and what a journey it has been. The awards started life as an online only affair during the Covid outbreak, before launching as a small scale in real life event and growing year on year to the point where we’re now selling out this fine, historic venue.”

He added: “Congratulations to all of our finalists. Many submissions did not make it through to the final stage, and getting to this point is no mean feat. Checkout-free stores, automated supply chains, immersive experiences, on-demand delivery, next generation loyalty offerings, inclusive retail, green technology. We’ve got all the cool stuff covered this evening.”

“But just importantly we’ve got lots of great examples of companies taking innovative tech and making it usable in everyday operations - resulting in more efficiency and profitability in all areas.”

Congratulations to our 2024 winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Lucy Porter, and all those who attended November's gathering. 

For further information on the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards, please fill in the below form and we will get back to you asap.