Swedish furniture maker IKEA, a new member of HBCB, will break ground on June 3 2010 on its flagship Bulgarian outlet, which will be in the capital city of Sofia.
The chain, which is the world’s largest home furnishing retailer spanning 37 countries, plans to build its second Bulgarian store in the coastal city of Varna, said Greek company Fourlis SA, which holds the franchise licence in Greece, Cyprus and Bulgaria.
IKEA had been rumoured to be eyeing the Bulgarian market for four or five years. Fourlis purchased a site on Sofia’s Ring Road in 2008.
The new IKEA store in Sofia will cover 30 000 sq m and will have a 1200-car parking lot. It is scheduled to open in the second half of 2011, and expects to receive 1.6 million shoppers in the first year.
