Home improvement. The race is on for South East Asia

Ikea is very active in Asia, operating 33 stores in Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and China. In the fiscal year to August 2017, China became Ikea’s 5th biggest market by sales volume. The leading home equipment retailer is opening a new Philippines store in Manila via a franchise agreement, but without disclosing the exact location. In China, Ikea is operating three “Livat” shopping centres anchored by Ikea stores and aims to have at least 17 Chinese malls by 2030, predominantly in first and second-tier cities including Shanghai, Xi’an and Changsha.

In Malaysia, the biggest home improvement retailer “Mr DIY” is also reporting fair growth. In 2017, its sales reached €209 million via 350 Asian stores (including 300 units in Malaysia and 50 in Thailand, Brunei and Indonesia with a typical size of 930 sq.m). The firm is expecting a