IKEA CEO: Consumer behaviors are changing IKEA preferences

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IKEA, the world's biggest furniture group, is establishing a new headquarters in Shanghai. Jesper Brodin, CEO of the company, discusses in a Davos event the retailer's growth in Asia and its ambition to become carbon neutral.

Setting a target of zero emissions is one of many steps IKEA is taking to protect the environment. In 2016, company's direct suppliers and own factories emitted 3.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents. Brodin told CGTN that all of IKEA's home deliveries around the world will be with electric vehicles by 2025. Shanghai, however, is one year ahead of schedule in hitting the target.

China has been the fastest expanding market for IKEA. Within China's consumption upgrading, IKEA new stores are getting closer to the city center. IKEA's latest, biggest project ever is a new headquarters located in Shanghai's Lingkong SOHO within the LIVAT shopping center, CEO Brodin said in the interview.

Jesper Brodin, CEO of IKEA, speaks to CGTN. / CGTN Photo

Other key elements are a shift towards combination products and online services. Brodin said IKEA are focusing more on cooler Nordic things and trying to find out what everybody needs.

“So we did a transformation… we have stepped into sound, and we are looking for surging of devices integrated to furniture. These things we are pretty sure people want to like. So we have launched e-commerce last month and we launched on Wechat, we are building our home delivery network. What we know before is that customers choose one or the other, but now people tend to use the combination,” Brodin said.

Investments in a coming couple of years would be growing faster, he cited, as IKEA continues with ambitions to expand around the globe.

“When we have the time to grow faster when it comes time for the capability to invest, we are strong financially, and we have a long term plan. We started the biggest adventure - we have entered India, we have the first store in Hyderabad, which is more than 20 years later than in China, so we've begun a new adventure for what we do,” Brodin added.