IKEA Strategy To Win Indian Shoppers
Rajesh Srivastava
Former CEO JK Helene Curtis,Adjunct Faculty IIM Indore(08-15), Corporate Trainer, Coach / Mentor to Start ups, Penguin Best Selling Author of 'The New Rules of Business' & 'The 10 New Life Changing Skills'
IKEA, the world’s largest & extremely popular furniture maker will open its 1st outlet (37ooo square meter with 1000 seater capacity cafeteria) in Hyderabad, India.
IKEA has invested time to understand the Indian consumers by visiting 1000s of homes to gain insight into their needs, desire, dreams, aspiration & how they feel about their homes.
This study helped IKEA ensure that they design products & cafeteria menu which respects the cultural sensitivity of the people the store will serve!
o Ingredient: IKEA will not be serving its famed meat ball made from ‘beef’. Bowing to cultural sensitivity the meat ball will be made from chicken.
o Local menu: In its cafeteria, it will serve local favourites catering to local taste ‘vegetarian’ ball, biryani, samosa & more!
o Price Sensitive shoppers: For them, IKEA has designed a range of products which is priced less than Rs. 200.
o Merchandise: IKEA will also offer a range of special appliances – idly making equipment & products – masala box – which are unique to India,
o Do-It- Yourself (DIY): Across the world, IKEA is known for its DIY strategy – shoppers buy semi-assembled furniture at IKEA stores, carry it home where they assemble it themselves. IKEA follows this strategy to keep the price down. But in India, where the price of labor is low, people are not used to assembling. Therefore, IKEA had tied up with Urban Clap – an online platform that helps connect ‘karigar’ with people.
Bottom-line: Customers will not change their habits to suit your products. You will have to modify / craft products which will compliant with your customers lifestyle & cultural beliefs!
Technology and transformation-Process Bionics India
6 年Induvant Singh Tomar as anticipated local menu ;-)
Driving complex projects from concept to completion utilizing project management and leadership skillsets
6 年All said well but I hope IKEA will make sure that the price sensitivity should not lead to inferior quality of products, as IKEA worldwide is known for good quality and diverse range of products at affordable pricing.
Communication Strategist and Creative Producer at SELCO Foundation #Climate #Ecosystems #ImpactSpace
6 年It's great to see IKEA Group doing its DIY marketing to appease the Indian consumers! Amazing modifications. Well thought through. Can't wait to see the IKEA India showroom! <3
HR Business Partner, International Rice Research Institute
6 年Customers will not change their habits to suit your products - Well said!