Are shoppers electric? Ikea tests out 'do it yourself delivery' solutions for urban customers

Ikea is exploring ways to enhance delivery services that cater for varying budgets, with its latest initiative involving the retailer doing one part of the process, whilst customers do another.

“Not everyone has access to a car in urban locations, and public transport isn’t always ideal for large items,” says Alastair Morgan, Global Core Services Manager at Ingka Group, the largest Ikea retailer.

“Ikea aims to serve the many, but traditional home delivery isn’t always suitable. We’re exploring DIY delivery solutions to offer more accessible, affordable, and convenient take home options. This initiative reduces dependency on delivery services, increases customer satisfaction, and aligns with our vision for a more sustainable, customer-centric retail experience.”

Ikea is testing several rentable solutions at its Utrecht store in the Netherlands, Westbahnhof Vienna in Austria, and Gallerian Stockholm in Sweden. These include a trolley for short distances by foot or bus; an electric four-wheel bike with a storage box; an electric cargo bike, and an electric trailer for walking or attaching to a bike.

For customers living further from a store who prefer a more affordable option than traditional straight to home delivery, the retailer is expanding its pick-up locker service.

Led by the Development and Innovation Network - a collaboration between Inter Ikea Group and all franchisees (including Ingka) - Ikea has collaborated with an external company to create modular lockers that can be placed in external locations. These lockers are now installed in four UK grocery store parking lots (with six more to come), as well as two in Belgium and one in the Netherlands.

This allows customers to pick up their orders 24/7 at locations closer to their homes or work. The test started in November 2024. The initiative won the Omnichannel Retailer Initiative of the Year gong at the 2024 Retail Tech Innovation Hub Awards.

“We are always looking for ways to make shopping more convenient and accessible. By testing pick-up lockers in new locations, we’re bringing Ikea closer to where people live, making it easier to collect purchases at a time and place that suits them. This is one of many ways we’re exploring and co-creating smarter, more flexible delivery solutions with our trusted collaborators for our customers,” says Peter Ac, Head of Supply Chain Innovations, Inter Ikea Group.

2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Online delivery will be a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.

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

Our 2024 hall of fame entrants, including Ikea, 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.