IKEA teams up with Russian Post to deliver online orders

MOSCOW (Reuters) - IKEA Group on Thursday signed a delivery cooperation agreement with Russian Post in a bid to reach more customers as it develops its local online business.

FILE PHOTO: The logo of IKEA is seen above a store in Voesendorf, Austria, April 24, 2017. REUTERS/Heinz-Peter Bader/File Photo

In a joint statement, the two companies said they were currently negotiating the terms of the agreement, which is expected to start in 2019.

“The cooperation with Russian Post is an important step towards creating an efficient system of multi-channel sales,” said Pontus Erntell, the furniture retailer’s Russia country manager.

“The large network that the federal (postal) operator has will allow all residents of Russia to have access to our offering,” he added.

IKEA, known for its flat-packed self-assembly furniture, owns 14 hypermarkets in 11 Russian cities. In the past year, it has focused on bringing customers online and that business now accounts for 8 percent of its Russian turnover.

Erntell earlier said that IKEA was looking to sign strategic partnerships with Russian companies to boost its local online business.

State-run Russian Post has 42,000 branches across Russia.

Reporting by Maria Kolomychenko; Writing by Maria Kiselyova; Editing by Kirsten Donovan

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(Original source)