Latest news with #RobOlson
The Verge
3 days ago
- Business
- The Verge
Mini Ikea stores will be opening inside select Best Buy locations this year
Ikea has announced that it's opening mini retail experiences in a handful of Best Buy stores in the southern US later this year. It's the first time Ikea's products and services will be available through another US retailer, saving shoppers from having to visit and navigate the chain's warehouse-sized stores which aren't as plentiful in the US as Best Buy locations. Although Ikea has had a strong push into offering its own smart home products in recent years including lights and plugs, its new shop-in-shops won't be focusing on electronics like the Apple-branded shops already located in most Best Buy stores. Instead, they're designed to lure shoppers who are already at Best Buy to purchase appliances like fridges and washing machines into potentially redesigning their kitchens and laundry rooms. 'By bringing together our home furnishing expertise, products, and services with Best Buy's leadership in appliances and technology, we're creating a one-stop destination where customers can design their dream kitchen, storage solutions or laundry space with ease,' said Rob Olson, chief operation officer, Ikea US, in a press release. You won't be able to walk out of Best Buy with a new Billy bookcase, but you will be able to sit down with an Ikea rep in a mini showroom environment who can help you find new home furnishings and then order Ikea products for delivery. The Ikea shop-in-shops will be 1,000-square-feet in size and will launch at 10 Best Buy locations in Florida and Texas including Daytona Beach, South Austin, and Mesquite. Ikea hasn't announced plans to open more than the initial 10 next year, but it seems like an easier way for the Swedish home furnishings chain to expand its presence since it currently has just 52 locations in the US while Best Buy has over 1,000. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All by Andrew Liszewski Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Ikea Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All News Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Smart Home Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Tech
Tom's Guide
04-08-2025
- Business
- Tom's Guide
Best Buy just teamed up with IKEA to launch 'Planning Centers' for home projects — here's the full list of locations
It's always exciting when planning your dream home re-design or kitchen upgrade. And while we all could do with the help of design guru Joanna Gaines, finding inspiration and suitable appliances to match can be challenging at the best of times. Launching this fall Best Buy and IKEA will team up to lend a helping hand. The two popular home stores have partnered up to offer a one-stop shopping experience for customers to buy new appliances for their kitchen and laundry rooms. These in-store planning centers aim to help customers make better buying decisions about what will work best for their home and needs that also matches IKEA's design inspiration. 'This partnership between IKEA and Best Buy is about making great design and functionality more accessible for the many,' states Rob Olson, chief operations officer for IKEA U.S., in an IKEA press release. Currently, 10 Best Buy stores will feature in-store planning centers So what can we expect? Essentially, these exciting in-store planning centers will include 1,000-square-foot IKEA layouts modeled to showcase ideal kitchens or laundry rooms. Customers can then walk around in the spaces to visualize and experience how Best Buy and IKEA products can work well together — and can be incorporated into their homes and lifestyles. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Additionally, there will be IKEA staff at hand to assist customers with the design of a space, and advice on what appliances, electronics and furnishings to buy. In fact, this ground-breaking partnership is the first time IKEA products and services will be accessible through another U.S. retailer, making it more tailored to customer needs. So if you want to create your dream (and no-fuss) home upgrade, be sure to head to your nearest Best Buy this fall. Check here to find out if there's a Planning Center near you: Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
Chicago Tribune
31-07-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
In first store partnership, Ikea opening mini-showrooms in Best Buys
Ikea is teaming up with another retailer for the first time: Best Buy. The Swedish home goods giant will feature kitchen and laundry products inside mini-showrooms at select Best Buy locations. The store-in-stores will feature Best Buy appliances. The first 10 shops will launch in Florida and Texas and will be similar to the Ulta hubs in Targets and Sephora mini-stores in Kohl's. Best Buy declined to comment on when a location might reach its home state. The move reflects Best Buy's broader push to expand beyond its core electronics business, including the upcoming launch of a third-party marketplace. For Ikea, it offers a chance to tap into new markets as it looks to grow its U.S. footprint. 'Our focus is on creating new experiences for our customers that help them discover what technology can do for them, and this partnership with Ikea is a great example of how we're bringing this to life in our stores,' Patrick McGinnis, chief merchandising officer at Best Buy, said in a statement. The new locations will be staffed by Ikea designers and will offer consultation services. The first locations will open in the fall. Best Buy declined to comment on the financial side of the partnership. Compared with CVS Pharmacy at Target, where the retailer acts more as a landlord, Best Buy and Ikea are working 'collectively to provide holistic furnishing and appliance experiences,' the company said. Two stores also will serve as Ikea fulfillment centers, allowing customers of the home superstore to pick up their orders from a participating Best Buy location. Ikea, which prides itself on cost-consciousness and simplicity, is actively expanding its presence in the U.S., including smaller format Plan & Order stores like the one in Rosedale Center. 'This new partnership is really allowing us to bring the Ikea experience closer to where people live,' said Rob Olson, chief operating officer at Ikea U.S. The company plans to invest $2.2 billion in the U.S. market. In Texas, Ikea announced three new stores, all expected to open by the end of 2025 or early 2026. There are currently 10 stores in Texas and six in Florida. Ikea's large-format store like the one across from Mall of America in Bloomington — which most U.S. shoppers are familiar with — averages around 300,000 square feet. The newer, smaller locations typically average between 40,000 and 60,000 square feet. The Ikea hubs at Best Buy will be 1,000 square feet. Ikea operates 487 stores; 52 of them are in the U.S. 'Our vision for a perfect shop-in-shop experience is simple: We want customers to be able to envision their life at home,' Olson said. Best Buy has posted a decline in comparable sales for all quarters dating back to fiscal year 2023, aside from a 0.5% increase in the fourth quarter. The Minnesota-based retailer will report its second quarter earnings Aug. 28. The company also shed health tech startup Current Health in June. Best Buy declined to comment on details of the sale. It was reportedly purchased for $400 million four years ago. The retailer's third-party marketplace is expected to launch 'midyear,' CEO Corie Barry said on a first quarter earnings call. The low-risk, high-reward endeavor allows Best Buy to more closely compete with Amazon and other online retailers. 'This will allow us to bring our customers access to much more expansive assortments and new categories without needing to own the inventory,' Barry told analysts in March.
USA Today
31-07-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Best Buy adding IKEA showrooms in some stores: See where
An IKEA inside a Best Buy? It's happening, sort of. The popular Swedish furniture store is teaming up with the electronics giant to bring kitchen and laundry planning to select Best Buy stores across the country. Beginning in the fall, customers shopping at 10 Best Buy stores will be able to get "inspiration, planning support and make purchases for their kitchens and laundry rooms like never before," according to the retailer's news release. The partnership, which will be the first-ever cross-brand retail experience for IKEA U.S., aims to "make it easier to integrate Best Buy appliances into IKEA kitchens and home laundry areas." Here's what to know about the IKEA and Best Buy mashup, including where the service will be available. Why are IKEA and Best Buy joining forces? According to Rob Olson, the chief operations officer for IKEA U.S., the partnership will create what he called a "one-stop destination where customers can design their dream kitchen, storage solutions or laundry space with ease." The new in-store collaboration between the retailers will initially launch in 10 stores throughout Florida and Texas, and feature 1,000-square-foot IKEA footprints that "showcase inspirational kitchen and laundry room settings," according to the release. At these stores, customers can receive support from IKEA workers to plan and order home furnishing products, as well as get advice on electronics from Best Buy employees. Where will the Best Buy and IKEA pilot locations be? Here are the 10 Best Buy stores that will feature an IKEA shop-in-shop later this year: Additionally, two stores – Lakeland, Florida, and Alamo Ranch, Texas – will serve as pick-up points for IKEA shoppers. Customers in these markets will be able to pick up most IKEA U.S. products for free at these Best Buy stores, regardless of whether they were purchased through the new IKEA in Best Buy design experience or Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at JLimehouse@
CNBC
31-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Best Buy, Ikea test new kitchen concept in U.S. stores
Best Buy said Thursday it will test mini-showrooms in some of its stores featuring Ikea products to show off kitchen design elements from the home retailer beside home appliances from the electronics store. Beginning this fall, the program will debut in 10 Best Buy stores across Florida and Texas. Each store will feature a 1,000-square-foot Ikea "shop-in-shop" showcasing styled kitchens and laundry rooms. "By bringing together our home furnishing expertise, products, and services with Best Buy's leadership in appliances and technology, we're creating a one-stop destination where customers can design their dream kitchen, storage solutions or laundry space with ease," Rob Olson, chief operation officer of Ikea U.S. said in a Thursday press release. The companies did not disclose financial aspects of the partnership. IKEA is the Swedish flat-pack furniture giant, while Best Buy is one of the United States' top consumer electronic stores. The partnership comes as Best Buy looks for new ways to attract shoppers. The company has struggled lately with rising tariff pressures, a soft demand in appliances, and a sluggish housing market. Best Buy said this spring that it had increased prices on some items due to tariffs.
