'We love your cool furniture!' People beat the heat in Beijing by going to sleep in air conditioned IKEA... but the store says they are welcome
- IKEA now used for more than furniture shopping in China
- Customers at Beijing IKEA visit store purposely to take a nap
- Flat-pack giant says they see strange trend as 'future investment'
Anyone who has ever been to an IKEA knows that it is not exactly a half-an-hour job, so who can blame their customers for putting their feet up for a minute or two?
However, on the other side of the world from the flat-pack giant’s native Sweden, testing the furniture is rarely the reason for a sofa break.
IKEA’s Beijing store regularly turns into a slumber party, with many customers visiting the store purposely for a nap, a catch-up with families or just to get a welcome break from the summer heat.
Shopping fatigue: Two tired female IKEA fans take a break in one of the beds at the Beijing store
Where all the cool kids go: Visiting IKEA with no intention of buying has become a trend in Beijing
Welcome home: It is not unusual to see people
napping, meeting up with friends or having a snack in the display
'rooms' in IKEA Beijing
Visiting IKEA without the need for a Billy bookcase or endless storage solutions, but simply to try the comfort of a Lervik frame or the bounce of a Malm may seem ludicrous to most people, but in China this is an ever-growing trend.
Many people just come to the IKEA store to enjoy the air-conditioning on a hot summer day and to meet rest on the comfy furniture on display.
The company hasn't taken any measures against people making themselves at home, because it sees it as a future investment.
IKEA opened up their first shop in China in 1999 and the country is now home to three of the top-five largest IKEA's in the world, only beaten by one in - where else - Stockholm.
Swedish hospitality: IKEA has not taken any
measures against people making themselves at home, because it sees it as
a future investment
Quality time: All that is needed for this to simulate a night in is a television
Just hanging: Most sofas and beds are occupied as Beijing citizens go for some Scandinavian TLC
The flat-pack chain was founded by 87-year-old Ingvar Kamprad in 1943, celebrating its 70th anniversary this year.
IKEA is the world’s largest furniture retailer, recording an annual net profit of £3.2billion in 2012, achieving sales of £27.6billion in 44 countries.
There are more IKEA catalogues than bibles printed each year, and it is said that one in ten Europeans is now conceived in an IKEA bed.
Family day out: Beijing citizens make themselves comfortable in IKEA's mattress section
One shopper appears to have completely passed out on one of the beds in the middle of rush hour
Scandinavian takeover: Three of IKEA's top five largest stores can be found in China
the auctioneer, consignment shop owner, or dealer a favor to let them have everything.... Sometimes the cost of cleaning, fixing, and hauling something away is more than it's worth, so you may end up paying someone to just haul the stuff away." Demir Leather & Furniture
ReplyDelete