We had a debate here a few weeks ago over who among us actually likes to subject themselves to shopping at a physical IKEA store. Some of us dread the crowd-fighting notion, while others enjoy the chaotic scene, the Swedish meatballs and more at the giant furniture outlets.
For folks who prefer to shop online, news that IKEA products are now available on Amazon appears to be a win.
The fact that assemble-it-yourself furniture can now be purchased — with free, two-day shipping thanks to Prime — on Amazon comes just a week after IKEA CEO Torbjorn Loof said the company planned to bring its products to websites other than its own in order to target more customers.
“On digital platforms, we only sell our products through our own website, and there we also see that the competitive landscape is changing,” Loof told Reuters on June 7. “I leave unsaid on which [platforms], but we will test and pilot, to see ‘what does this mean, what does digital shopping look like in future and what do digital shopping centers mean?'”
Apparently the company figured out at least one of those platforms ahead of Loof’s 2018 timeline. A search of “IKEA” on Amazon brings up a range of the ubiquitous products from bookshelves and kids’ step stools to dish ware, lightbulbs and more.
Whether the free shipping is enough to keep some people from making the trip to a physical store remains to be seen. But now that even the Swedish meatball sauce is available on Amazon, what’s left to see … and eat?
