ST. LOUIS, MO, 2015-7-2 — /EPR Retail News/ — IKEA, the world’s leading home furnishings retailer, today announced that its future St. Louis store will open 9 a.m. on Wednesday, September 30, 2015, expanding the IKEA presence in the Midwestern United States. It will be the Swedish company’s first store in Missouri, and 41st in the U.S., with the closest IKEA stores in: Chicago-area Bolingbrook and Schaumburg; and Merriam, KS. Customers can begin lining-up at the store on Monday, September 28, 2015 – 48 hours in advance of the doors’ opening on September 30 – and soon can learn of more grand opening plans and promotions at IKEA-USA.com/StLouis.
“We are thrilled by the construction progress made to date, and believe the remaining milestones and interior build-up will be completed by end of September,” noted John Achillea, store manager of the future IKEA St. Louis. “Besides furnishing our store, we are focused on training the 300 coworkers joining the IKEA family.”
The 380,000 square-foot future IKEA St. Louis is being built on 21 acres along Interstate-64 at Vandeventer Avenue, with 1,300 parking spaces, in the City’s Cortex Innovation District. The store will reflect the unique architectural design for which IKEA is known worldwide, and Missouri’s largest rooftop solar array, consistent with the IKEA renewable energy presence at 90% of its U.S. locations.
IKEA St. Louis will feature nearly 10,000 exclusively designed items, 50 inspirational room-settings, three model home interiors, a supervised children’s play area, and a 450-seat restaurant serving Swedish specialties such as meatballs with lingonberries and salmon plates, as well as American dishes. Other family-friendly features include a ‘Children’s IKEA’ area in the Showroom, baby care rooms, play areas throughout the store, and preferred parking.
In addition to the more than 500 jobs created from construction, 300 coworkers will have joined the IKEA family for when the new store opens. Diverse positions at this employer of choice include: sales, interior design, customer service, safety and security, cashiers, maintenance, goods flow, receiving, warehouse and stock replenishment. Also, among its total coworkers, IKEA St. Louis offers more than 60 food service opportunities in its Restaurant, Swedish Foodmarket, Café Bistro and coworker cafeteria. Interested candidates should visit IKEA-USA.com to apply as well as contact the St. Louis Agency on Training and Employment (SLATE). Since its 1943 founding in Sweden, IKEA has offered home furnishings of good design and function at low prices so the majority of people can afford them. There are currently more than 360 IKEA stores in 47 countries, including 40 in the U.S. IKEA has been ranked in FORTUNE’s annual “100 Best Companies to Work For” list, Working Mother magazine’s annual list of “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers” and Training magazine’s annual “Top 100.” IKEA incorporates sustainability into day-to-day business and supports initiatives that benefit children and the environment. For more information see IKEA-USA.com, @IKEAUSANews, @IKEAUSA or IKEAUSA on Facebook, Youtube, Instagram and Pinterest.
Contact: Joseph Roth, Expansion Public Affairs
(610) 834-0180, x. 6500