IKEA has recently asked India’s government to allow the furniture company to develop a cluster near the Kandla port in Gujarat.
The cluster wouldn’t be used for a new IKEA factory, but for to offer designs to Indian furniture companies and to source products from them, as reported by Live Mint.
The Swedish furniture manufacturer is the first foreign company to have been given permission to open a retail chain in India after the 2012 foreign direct investment policy for single brand retail.
IKEA will open its first store in India by the second half of 2017 and it will be built in Hyderabad. Also, the company has bought land in Mumbai in May as to open their second store in the country.
At the moment, IKEA wants to double its sourcing in India and to invest in how to use sustainable materials such as bamboo, jute and coconut fibre, according to Live Mint.
There are 45,000 players at 50 suppliers who produce IKEA goods in India now and the Swedish company wants to develop the furniture cluster cluster on 450 acres near Kandla port. They would also provide the technology and design for the products and the wood would be imported from Africa and Canada.
IKEA has been sourcing products made in India for 28 years now and plans to open a total of 25 stores in the country by 2025. Every year, the company gains nearly EUR 315 million from the products exported from India.
