Ghassan Ahmed Al Sulaiman Furniture Trading Co. Ltd., IKEA Saudi Arabia, a major home furnishing retailer in the Kingdom, plans to open its first order and collection (O&C) points to get closer to customers across the Kingdom.
The first locations will be positioned in Al-Kharj and Qassim starting early next year. 
The retail area covering the O&C points, measuring about 1,000 sqm, will represent a new IKEA concept that provides shopping experiences to customers who cannot make long trips to the larger stores by bringing it closer to them.
Order and O&C points will also provide customers an opportunity to engage with IKEA coworkers and ask questions, touch and feel products, and get ideas and inspiration on how to furnish their homes.
Customers will also be able to browse a range of products that are not displayed at the O&C points through IKEA’s catalogue or website and still be able to purchase them at the store or online.
Once the products are ordered from these points, customers will receive a notification to either collect the items from the O&C points or have them delivered to their doorsteps for a reasonable fee.
“It is really vital for us that we are able to provide our home furnishing solutions to all our customers, wherever they may be.” said Faisal Al-Gain, country marketing manager, IKEA Saudi Arabia.
“Our decision to open in the two cities stems from the extensive research efforts conducted over the last few months to know where our customers are located and how we can make it easier for them to access our stores,” he added.
The products available in the O&C points will be facilitated through IKEA’s online portal, which will allow customers to browse through the products available and place their orders at these points.
O&C points will offer similar services as the main IKEA store, which include exchanges and returns, sales and planning assistance, ordering of products, and other services such as delivery and assembly.
The e-commerce portal and the O&C points are stated to go hand in hand to provide existing and potential customers with better accessibility and services. The initiative is aimed to offer customers an online shopping experience, with the same quality of products, services and prices, where they can order online and pickup their items at the O&C point in their vicinity, at their own convenience.

Source: Arab News