With pictures: IKEA’s first ever store in India that has just opened in Hyderabad

Swedish furniture retail company IKEA opened its first Indian store on Thursday in Hyderabad. This is the first of the 40 plus outlets the world’s largest furniture retailer plans to open in India.

IKEA has invested Rs 1000 crore on the Hyderabad outlet which spreads across four-lakh square feet and will display over 7,500 products.

Around 1000 products that will be displayed in the swanky Hyderabad store will cost less than Rs 200. According to an official statement around 20 percent of the products displayed will be locally sourced.

KEA store in Hyderabad will directly employ 950 people, while an additional 1500 would be employed indirectly in services. The company has also recruited around 100 girls from the DISHA pilot project.

The store will display two full homes that will represent “Life at home in Hyderabad” and will also exhibit different room sets according to different sections of the house such as kitchen, bedroom, living room and children’s room.

The store also hosts a market hall where customers can purchase home kitchen utensils as well as other lifestyle products such as rugs, live plants, textiles, decorative items among others

The IKEA store will open throughout the week from 10 am to 11 pm, according to an official statement. IKEA also expects a footfall of 60 lakh each year.

The store which is built in over 13 acres of land, also has a 1000-seater restaurant which is touted to be IKEA’s largest and possibly India’s largest restaurant. The elaborate menu will feature Swedish cuisine and India cuisine, including several vegetarian options.

The in-house restaurant will offer delicacies like samosas, biryani, dal makhni etc and will be available to customers at an affordable price point, for example, a plate of samosas will cost Rs 10.