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Swedish furniture retailer Ikea is betting big on its B2B business, on the back of rapid urbanisation and growing demand for branded solutions. The company is sharply focussing on strengthening its presence in the B2B segment, which offers solutions to real estate players, educational institutions, hotels and offices.
Sumit Parthi, Country B2B Manager, IKEA India, told businessline that the company’s B2B business has witnessed exponential growth in the past four years. “We have seen B2B business almost doubling every year. We expect to further strengthen this business as the brand expands geographically in the country, especially in Delhi-NCR,” he added.
Currently, B2B business contributes in the range of 15-20 per cent to company’s overall business in India. So far, Ikea has been primarily been offering B2B solutions in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Mumbai. Parthi added that the company has also done projects in some other cities.
“We have been working closely with leading residential construction companies, as well as offering solutions for offices. We are now working with most of the top builders across these cities to offer solutions to design show flats for their end consumers. With some builders we have also got into strategic tie-ups, enabling them to sell their flats better as they look at more value-added offerings. In terms of offices, we offer a wide range of solutions, which cater to the various needs, whether it’s a start-up or a big company,” Parthi explained.
He added that the company is also offering solutions to hotels, co-working spaces, educational institutions, and incubation centres, among others. “We recently did a hotel project in Himachal, where from furniture to crockery, everything was designed, commissioned and installed by Ikea. So, we are geared to offer solutions for a small cafe to a full-scale five star hotel,” he pointed out.
key projects
Parthi said the brand’s ability to turn around large projects in a shorter period is helping the company secure key B2B projects. “We offer end-to-end solutions from designing the project to installation. B2B customers in India are increasingly looking for branded solutions with a strong focus on sustainability.” he added.
With the festival season round the corner, the retailer is also witnessing strong traction for corporate gifting orders.
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