RetailDetail EU
Europe - EN
  • België - NL
  • Belgique - FR
  • Nederland - NL
  • Europe - EN
  • Newsletter
  • Contact & Route
Members' area
  • Log in
  • Become a member
  • News
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Home
    • Electronics
    • Beauty/Care
    • DIY/Garden
    • Leisure
    • General
  • Events
    • OVERVIEW EVENTS
    • EVENT PARTNERSHIPS
  • Advertising
    • PRINT ADVERTISING
    • ONLINE ADVERTISING
  • Members’ area
RetailDetail EU
Europe - EN
  • België - NL
  • Belgique - FR
  • Nederland - NL
  • Europe - EN
  • Newsletter
  • Contact & Route
  • News
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Home
    • Electronics
    • Beauty/Care
    • DIY/Garden
    • Leisure
    • General
  • Events
    • OVERVIEW EVENTS
    • EVENT PARTNERSHIPS
  • Advertising
    • PRINT ADVERTISING
    • ONLINE ADVERTISING
  • Members’ area
Members' area
  • Log in
  • Become a member
thumb
Written by Pauline Neerman
In this article
  • Companies IKEAIngka Group
  • Topics InnovationInterviewLogisticsStore concepts
  • People Tolga Öncü
Share article
  • facebook
  • instagram
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • email

How IKEA lowers prices and still maintains margins

icon
Home9 November, 2023

After another record year, IKEA is reducing prices – meaning its Retail Operations Manager, Tolga Öncü, needs to find savings elsewhere. Still, he firmly chooses to continue investing in new store formats, solutions and experiences. “Luckily, we are not a listed company.”

27 % market share in Belgium

IKEA ended its previous fiscal year with a sales growth of 5.7 % to 41.7 billion euros. Öncü is also proud of the increase in market share: Ikea reached a 6 % global average. In Belgium the company even reached 27 % market share, in the Netherlands 12 %.

After the supply chain issues in 2022, the availability has improved worldwide. This enabled Ikea to launch commercial activations again, such as campaigns and deal offers. “In times like these IKEA acquires new visitors and attracts people who once shopped at Ikea but had gone elsewhere over the last 5 to 10 years. We now see customers returning, just like we did in 2008.”

In the year ending in August, Öncü saw an increase in all channels: stores, web, app and also remote selling. The latter is fairly new, but has been continuing to grow, and means that customers can have video calls with IKEA advisers on appointment. “Investments in our services strongly contributed: we have lowered last mile prices, invested in shorter lead times and improved accuracy, which lead to more convenience for customers.”

Innovation increases performance

IKEA accelerated investments in new shop formats in the city centres, close to where people either work or socialise. Over the last two years, the retailer opened a number of city-centre locations and “now they are paying off”, Öncü says. Often, the company reaches a whole new clientele through these stores. In some countries (like Germany and Belgium), however, there is no clear demand for city stores yet. A lack of mobility issues, one could say: “The need is bigger in cities where it is more complex to move between neighbourhoods.”

The ‘plan and order points’ or ‘planning studios’ are even smaller in size, down to just a couple of 100 square meters. Yet, consumers can buy anything from the full IKEA range thanks to screens and employees helping visitors pick. “When we go to smaller formats, we need to get even more creative and figure out new ways of displaying 9,500 articles in a very small space. As such, the ‘immersive room’ was developed for small format stores in France, but now the big stores are also asking for this solution. We will see it being used in most of the countries where we operate, to complement the existing IKEA experience.”

Öncü strongly believes that his formats complement each other: that is why IKEA also keeps expanding LIVAT, through which it manages large malls and often massive mixed-function real estate projects. Two new openings were recently announced in China – a bold move, as the Chinese economy appears on the verge of a downturn. “Concept innovation always continues. We keep looking for new formats and ways to create an even better IKEA experience. We also keep investing in our existing stores. Innovation is not tied to the day-to-day performance or operations, because otherwise we would constantly start, stop, start innovation and that would become a very difficult way of leading it.”

Automation to reduce prices

Automation continues to be another big priority: in Zagreb, a logistical solution was installed in an existing store without taking any square meter from the commercial space, and thanks to that investment, one single store can do the parcel process for the whole of Croatia. “We are now doing the same in Portugal: lead times will shorten quite dramatically. The main idea is that existing stores become part of the omnichannel distribution network: instead of building new external or central warehouses, we can use our existing stores.”

Cutting operational costs has become even more important, now that IKEA announced price reductions. Some product prices have been lowered since 1 September: “It was the right thing to do. But obviously, it is cutting into the product margins, so we need to continue our investments in other parts of the profit and loss. Luckily, we are not a listed company. It means we can take these kinds of decisions, even if it comes with a lot of responsibility.”

Öncü is convinced that it was the right decision, as the response has been very positive, both in sales volume development and visitor numbers. “Our vision is very clear: to create a better everyday life for the many people. And now, especially at times like these, where for many people it is becoming more challenging to reach the end of the month, we have an opportunity to use the savings we just talked about. We pass the savings from the supply chain onto the customers by lowering the prices.”

Never mind long-term, invest in flexibility

What are IKEA’s plans for next year? After five years as Retail Operations Manager, Öncü has learned not to think in the long term too much. “Especially in the last three years, the world keeps surprising us, so we are more focused on short term ambitions, goals and plans. We are especially investing in staying flexible. So, I prefer to be very careful in promising any numbers. However, our product focus on storage solutions across the home last year was very successful, so we are continuing this into the new year.”

In Belgium, IKEA recently launched lockers to collect online orders outside the store. The company needed to develop its own locker system, Öncü explains, as there is no industry standard the company can just plug into for its big-ticket items. Unfortunately, as it is “both more cost-efficient and more sustainable to use an existing setup”.

For now, the lockers are installed on the store parking lots, but Öncü does not exclude any opportunity to expand elsewhere. For instance, in Denmark, IKEA developed a lorry that drives around town. When the truck is coming to a customer’s neighbourhood, they get a text message: consumers can go there and collect their goods. “Every market has its own needs and innovations, and that is what makes it so interesting.”

More on Home
See more
  • icon
    Home16 May, 2025
    French outlet chain lays hands on stock of bankrupt Casa

    French outlet retailer NOZ has acquired the stock of Belgian decoration chain Casa, that went bankrupt in March.

  • icon
    Home15 May, 2025
    Walter Kadnar is new CEO IKEA Netherlands

    IKEA has appointed Walter Kadnar as its new CEO from 1 September: The Austrian national is coming over from the furniture retailer’s German branch to succeed Alessandra Zini, who died in January.

  • icon
    Home14 May, 2025
    Dille & Kamille has opened its first French shop

    On Wednesday morning, Dille & Kamille opened a shop in the centre of Nantes. The Dutch retailer is testing its potential in the French market in cooperation with local franchise partners.

Events
  • 19
    Jun
    CATEGORY MANAGEMENT CONGRESS 2025
  • 17
    Sep
    CAPTAINS OF RETAIL 2025 – EDITION II
  • 25
    Sep
    RETAIL MARKETING DAY 2025
Most read
  • icon
    Fashion30 May, 2025
    Why Belgian Nike employees fear redundancies
  • icon
    Food28 May, 2025
    Aldi and Lidl fight price war in Germany
  • icon
    Fashion7 May, 2025
    Zalando enters Luxembourg market with dedicated webshop and app
  • icon
    Fashion6 May, 2025
    Zalando confirms forecasts after excellent first quarter
Follow RetailDetail
  • socialFacebook
  • socialTwitter
  • socialInstagram
  • sociallinkedIn
footer-logo
RetailDetail, the leading b2b-retailcommunity in the Benelux, keeps retail professionals up-to-date by means of online & offline publications, retail events, inspiring retail hunts and the unique co-creation platform retailhub, where retailers and their suppliers can experience the future of shopping.
RetailDetail Mailing Address:
Kolveniersstraat 7, bus 26 2000 Antwerp
Visiting address:
Stadsfeestzaal – Meir 78 2000 Antwerp
How to reach us:
Directions
© 2025 RetailDetail
general conditions | privacy policy
Contact us About us info@retaildetail.be
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Accept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the ...
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT