The layoffs include about three percent of a total of 27,500 employees, including 300 jobs in Sweden, where the company’s main center in Almhult is located.
Inter IKEA manages the procurement of products from factories around the world and supplies 13 franchisees who run IKEA stores, writes Reuters.
The company’s CFO Henrik Elm stated that the goal is to become faster, shorten decision-making processes and concentrate efforts on key priorities.
He added that the long-term decline in consumer confidence was further accelerated by the war in Iran, which led to rising fuel prices and a reduction in household disposable income.
– Our ability to lower prices so that customers can afford IKEA products is now more important than ever, and this cannot be achieved if the cost base is too high – said Elm.
The company has been hit by rising costs and U.S. tariffs while conducting a strategic pivot from large warehouse stores in the suburbs to smaller locations in city centers to lure customers back.
The largest franchisor, Ingka Group, which operates the majority of IKEA stores worldwide, also announced in March that 800 administrative jobs would be cut.
Both companies changed CEOs at the end of last year, after IKEA saw its second consecutive drop in sales.
At the same time, Inter IKEA warned that further growth in fuel costs, environmental taxes and wages could further burden the business.
(Vijesti.ba / FENA)
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