Inter IKEA is responsible for the development of the IKEA brand, product design, and the global supply chain. The company serves 13 franchisees operating stores in 63 countries. The company's management justifies this decision by citing the need to simplify structures and accelerate decision-making processes.<\/p>\n
Despite many positive achievements, Inter IKEA Group has become too complex and too fragmented in a retail environment that demands simplicity and speed, said Henrik Elm, CFO of Inter IKEA Group.<\/p>\n
The layoffs are scheduled in two stages. By July 2026, the reductions will affect over 600 people. Another 250 positions are to be eliminated after the summer holidays. The entire operation is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.<\/p>\n
The largest layoffs will affect Sweden \u2013 approximately 300 employees, including those in \u00c4lmhult, the birthplace of the brand founded in 1943. The reductions will also affect employees in the Netherlands. The company cites declining consumer confidence, rising operating costs, US tariffs, and rising fuel prices related to the conflict in Iran as among the reasons.<\/p>\n
This is the second wave of layoffs within the group in just a few months. In March 2026, Ingka Group, IKEA's largest franchisee, managing the majority of the chain's stores, announced the elimination of approximately 800 office positions. Both companies\u2014Inter IKEA and Ingka Group\u2014changed CEOs at the end of last year, following a second consecutive year of declining sales.<\/p>\n
The financial situation of the group<\/strong><\/p>\n According to the official annual report of Inter IKEA Group for the 2024\/2025 financial year (September 1, 2024 - August 31, 2025), group revenue amounted to \u20ac26.3 billion, compared to \u20ac26.5 billion a year earlier \u2013 a decrease of 0.9%. Operating profit decreased by 26.3% year-on-year, to \u20ac1.7 billion from \u20ac2.3 billion a year earlier. Net profit decreased by 32%, from \u20ac2.2 billion to \u20ac1.5 billion. Gross margin shrank from 16.0% to 14.2%.<\/p>\n Average employment at Inter IKEA Group increased from 23,892 to 25,971 full-time equivalents during the fiscal year. However, this increase was due to the integration of the acquired IKEA Retail Baltics operations into the structure, not to organic growth.<\/p>\n For comparison, the combined retail sales of all 13 IKEA franchisees worldwide amounted to \u20ac44.6 billion in fiscal year 2025, compared to \u20ac45.1 billion a year earlier and \u20ac47.6 billion in fiscal year 2023.<\/p>\n Change in sales model and historic closure in Sweden<\/strong><\/p>\n In parallel with the job cuts, the company is changing its sales model. The chain is moving away from the concept of large, suburban warehouse stores (so-called \"blue boxes\") in favor of smaller outlets in city centers. Over the next six months, it plans to open 20 new, smaller stores in Europe and North America. One of the new locations will be in Bia\u0142ystok.<\/p>\n A symbolic manifestation of this transformation is a decision made in its home country of Sweden. IKEA announced the closure of its large store in Borl\u00e4nge, Dalarna, by 2027. The 31,000-square-meter facility has been operating since only 2013. This is the first economically motivated IKEA store closure in Sweden in over 40 years \u2013 the previous such decision in the brand's home country was made in 1983.<\/p>\n The Borl\u00e4nge store will be replaced by a much smaller location in the Kupolen shopping center, which is scheduled to open in the first half of 2027. The chain attributes the decision to the growing share of online sales and changing consumer shopping habits. The decision sparked opposition from the Borl\u00e4nge local authorities, who emphasized that they were informed of the company's plans shortly before the public announcement.<\/p>\n Polish IKEA Industry plants undergoing cuts<\/strong><\/p>\n Inter IKEA did not specify how many people in Poland will be affected by the announced global wave of layoffs. Regardless, IKEA Industry Poland plants in Poland are undergoing their own restructuring.<\/p>\n IKEA Industry Poland Sp. z o. o.'s Wielbark branch (Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship) plans to lay off approximately 240 of its 1,500 employees. Meanwhile, the Goleni\u00f3w branch plans to reduce 160 of its approximately 580-person workforce. This represents a reduction of nearly one-third of its workforce (more on this topic: IKEA Industry to lay off several hundred employees in Poland ).<\/p>\n The current layoffs continue the trend from 2025. At that time, IKEA Industry Poland eliminated 285 positions nationwide \u2013 165 of them in Goleni\u00f3w. The cuts also affected branches in Wielbark and Resko.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":98819,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5204],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-98818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n