According to rumours, IKEA might be contemplating putting up a store in Sussex. The furniture manufacturer from Sweden has not ruled out this possibility and the rumours going around is that they could soon be moving to the land currently owned by English Championship side Brighton and Hove Albion.
Martin Perry, the executive director of the club confirmed that the club had bought the land that was previously intended for 600 homes that were to be put up near the club’s training grounds in Lancing, east of Worthing. The Adur local plan also had provision for a new primary school and ‘employment space’.
A spokesperson for the Swedish firm said that several potential sites for a store in the county were being evaluated and that the firm was only making preliminary enquiries and there were no other details to offer.
The land in question is located at New Monks Farm which is just north of Brighton and Hove F.C.’s Elite Football Performance Centre. The records at Companies House show that the registered address for New Monks Farm Development Limited was on April 7th changed to the club’s AMEX Stadium. Several new directors were chosen shortly before the change including Mr Perry.
IKEA is a multinational that originated from Sweden but its current headquarters is in the Netherlands. The company is well-known for its ready-to-assemble furniture which it designs and manufactures but it also sells home accessories and kitchen appliances. It has been the biggest furniture retailer in the world since at least 2008. The company has a long history, having been started in 1943 by 17-year-old, Ingvar Kamprad. The modernist designs for its furniture along with the eco-friendly simplicity are some of the things that the company is known for although its attention to operational details, continuous product development and cost control are also well known. These attributes have enabled the company to bring down the prices of its products by an average of 2-3% as it was expanding globally.
IKEA currently has 400 stores in 49 countries and its website also has around 12,000 products, demonstrating just how diverse the company’s product range is, and the same website receives more than a billion visitors every year. Every store also has a food market where shoppers can enjoy traditional Swedish cuisines such as potatoes with Swedish meatballs although these may vary from location to location.