The new grand IKEA on Oxford Street will open this week after 18-months of delays

Lovers of affordable flat-pack furniture, meatballs and unpronounceable Swedish words, rejoice – a new IKEA store on Oxford Street will finally open this week, on Thursday 1 May. Open daily from 10am until 8pm, the new shop arrives after 18 months of delays, and carries with it hopes of a revival for the famed London shopping street, whose fortunes have taken time to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The new IKEA sits at the intersection of Oxford and Regent Streets and overlooks Oxford Circus; the historic, Grade II-listed building at 214 Oxford Street has undergone an extensive renovation and “environmental upgrade”, per the brand.

The store will offer an experience to shoppers comprising some of its best-known quirks and characteristics: customers can explore roomsets unique to the location, plan their own rooms with IKEA’s own designers, or stroll through the market hall to browse smaller home furnishings. There will also be a 130-seat Swedish Deli for Scandinavian fare. It will span three floors of the seven-storey building, with a retail space of 5,800 square metres, and is expected to employ 150 people.

IKEA bought the site for approximately £378 million in 2022, but the renovation process has taken significantly longer than expected. To tide customers over, the brand hosted a pop-up shop called “Hus of FRAKTA”, entirely dedicated to and inspired by their famous, nigh-on indestructible blue bag of the same name (according to IKEA, an estimated 45 per cent of UK households own one). The pop-up opened in February and closed last month.

A three-year renovation, described by the brand as “meticulous”, included complex work to balance the building’s heritage features with newer, environmentally friendly elements. Changes and updates included replacing traditional gas-fired boilers with heat pumps, installing secondary glazing to help the building retain heat, and cleaning and restoring the façade. A new lighting scheme has also been devised to illuminate the building at night.

On the fourth floor, an original Victorian roof lantern has been refurbished and is now protected by a new covering to increase its energy efficiency. The building includes four floors of office space, and these are served by period lift lobbies which have now been updated to meet modern safety standards while maintaining their original look and charm.