SWEDEN / CHILE – On May 17th S.A.C.I. Falabella and Inter IKEA Systems B.V., owner of the IKEA Concept and international franchisor of IKEA, signed a memorandum of understanding for the granting of franchise rights in Chile, Colombia and Peru to S.A.C.I. Falabella.

The objective is to open at least nine stores in Chile, Colombia and Peru in a period of 10 years, along with online sales channels for these three countries. It is expected that the first store will open in the city of Santiago at the end of 2020, to continue later with openings in Lima and Bogotá.

“We are of course very excited to bring IKEA to South America together with Falabella, who is a strong local partner with a lot of experience in developing and successfully operating retail businesses. They also have a well-developed distribution network in the region, which will give us the speed we need to be more accessible to the many. Together we’ll work to make IKEA a loved and meaningful brand for the people in Chile, Colombia and Peru,” says Torbjörn Lööf, CEO Inter IKEA Group.

“We will bring to the three countries the full experience of IKEA, with stores and online sales such as those already existing in Europe, the United States and Asia. IKEA will complement the current offer of products and services of our home improvement subsidiary Sodimac. As has happened in other countries, we want IKEA to become one of the favorite brands of Chileans, Peruvians and Colombians," says Sandro Solari, CEO of S.A.C.I. Falabella.

In America IKEA is active in Canada with 13 stores, in the USA with 47 stores, and in the Dominican Republic with one store. In Mexico Inter IKEA Systems B.V. granted the Ikano Group exclusive rights to explore expansion opportunities in the country. The Ikano Group has a long and proud association with the IKEA brand, and has a strong record in successfully operating IKEA stores in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Ikano opened an office in Mexico City in April 2017.

Today IKEA reaches 1.2 billion customers. By 2025 IKEA aims to reach 3.2 billion customers in stores and online. There are currently 418 stores in 49 markets, and IKEA is constantly investigating expansion opportunities with the aim to reach more of the many people. IKEA expansion focuses on both existing and new markets.

About IKEA

IKEA offers well-designed, functional and affordable, high-quality home furnishing, produced with care for people and the environment. There are several companies with different owners, working under the IKEA Brand, all sharing the same vision: to create a better everyday life for the many people. IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943.

Inter IKEA Group

Inter IKEA Group consists of three core businesses: Franchise, Range & Supply and Industry. Within the Franchise business, Inter IKEA Systems B.V. is the owner of the IKEA Concept and the worldwide IKEA franchisor. It develops and offers the IKEA Concept to IKEA franchisees worldwide, enabling the long-term fulfillment of the IKEA business idea. In the Range & Supply business, IKEA of Sweden AB is responsible for developing, designing and producing home furnishing solutions to address the everyday needs of the many people. In addition, IKEA Supply AG is the wholesale company that supplies the IKEA franchisees with IKEA products. Lastly, the Industry business is a manufacturer of wood based IKEA Products.

About S.A.C.I. Falabella
S.A.C.I. Falabella is a Chile based multinational company and one of the largest retail companies in South America. It operates in several business areas, the main ones being department stores, home improvement, supermarkets, financial services (bank, credit cards, insurance) and shopping malls.

Today the company runs more than 494 stores and 42 shopping centers with their own logistics setup. S.A.C.I. Falabella has more than 100,000 employees and presence in Chile, Perú, Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and recently in Mexico.

S.A.C.I. Falabella is traded on the Santiago Stock Exchange and is part of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI), which groups the leading companies committed to sustainable development. The company is also included in the DJSI Emerging Markets, DJSI Chile and the recently created DJSI MILA.