Furniture retailer IKEA has announced plans to close seven stores in China from 2 February 2026.
The locations scheduled for closure are IKEA Shanghai Baoshan, IKEA Guangzhou Panyu, and IKEA Tianjin Zhongbei, along with stores in Nantong, Xuzhou, Ningbo and Harbin.
The company said the decision forms part of an optimisation exercise aimed at improving efficiency across its physical and digital channels.
Customers affected by the closures will continue to be served through other IKEA stores in the same cities where available, as well as through the retailer’s online operations.
These include its website and mobile apps, a WeChat shoppable mini-programme, and flagship stores on major e-commerce platforms such as Tmall and JD.com.
IKEA said China remains a strategic market for the group. The company began sourcing from the country in the 1960s and opened its first Chinese store in 1998.
It has since developed an end-to-end value chain encompassing product development, sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, retail and digital operations while shifting from a traditional “cash-and-carry” format to an integrated omnichannel model.
The company currently operates 41 offline customer meeting points in China, alongside three proprietary digital channels and two stores on major third-party e-commerce platforms.
Recent developments highlighted by the company include the redesign of its Xuhui store, the opening of five new stores of different sizes across the country, and the launch of its presence on JD.com.
IKEA added that it will support employees affected by the closures through what it described as an “open, fair and transparent process”.
Looking ahead, the group plans to concentrate growth in Beijing and Shenzhen, with more than ten small-format stores expected to open in the two cities over the next two years.
These include IKEA Dongguan, scheduled for February 2026, and IKEA Tongzhou, due to open in April.
Last month, the company announced plans to increase the volume of products sourced from manufacturing facilities in the US in response to rising import costs linked to tariffs imposed during the Trump administration.
The change represented a reversal of a long-term decline in domestic production for the US market.
