IKEA Exeter opening pushed back after bad weather

Home furnishings retailer, IKEA, today announces a revised opening date for its new Exeter store. Following extreme weather conditions in the region, IKEA Exeter will now open on Thursday 10th May, 2018.

As a values-driven organisation, IKEA always prioritises the safety and wellbeing of its co-workers and contractors. Due to adverse weather conditions over the last three weeks and temperatures reaching sub-zero with snow and ice, IKEA made the decision twice to halt construction of its upcoming Exeter store to ensure the safety of its team.

Nick Earle, IKEA Exeter Store Manager, said: “At IKEA, we always put the interests of our co-workers first. With poor weather conditions across the region, the safety of our construction and retail team was our top priority. We decided on both occasions to pause all building work until we deemed it safe for the team to return to the site.

“The construction schedule for IKEA Exeter has been impacted, so we have made the decision to push back the store opening date by ten days. We apologise to the Devon community for the delay in opening the store and we look forward to welcoming our customers and co-workers on Thursday 10th May for what will be a brilliant day.” 

IKEA Exeter, the 21st store in the UK, will be the retailer’s most sustainable store to date, aiming to achieve 100% renewable energy. Along with creating 350 local jobs with over 85% of co-workers being recruited from the Exeter and Devon area.

Having invested £80 million in the 29,000 square metre store on Newcourt Way, IKEA will bring its extensive range of high-quality, affordable products to the Devon region.

For more information, please visit www.ikea.co.uk/gb