Ikea to launch e-commerce business model in Shanghai

A staff member works at an outlet of Ikea in Xihongmen, Beijing, Nov 6, 2013. [China Daily]

Swedish home furnishings retailer Ikea Group will launch its e-commerce business in Shanghai and start to sell its products online by the end of August.

This is the company's first online sales attempt in the Asia-Pacific region.

As a pilot program, the delivery services will be limited to Shanghai for the moment. All of its ready-to-assemble furniture, appliances and home accessories, except for food and green plants, will be sold online. Ikea plans to expand its e-commerce services across the country if the trial run is successful.

The company said that a few years ago it started to develop an e-commerce business model in Europe, especially northern Europe and the United Kingdom. China will be the first country where it tries out e-commerce operations in the Asia-Pacific region, as part of its multichannel retailing strategy.