IKEA to Open Downtown San Francisco Store

IKEA (Delft, Netherlands) is preparing to open its upcoming downtown San Francisco store, set to debut Aug. 23.

Located at 945 Market Street, the store will feature two Swedish delis and a furniture buy-back service. It will reportedly focus on storage and “small-space living,” and will also offer home delivery, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The store will be roughly 85,000 square feet set across three floors.

“We will be bringing jobs, people and commercial activity back to the Mid-Market area,” says Market Manager for IKEA San Francisco, Arda Akalin.

Though some retailers are exiting the San Francisco market altogether, IKEA is a welcome sign for locals, with residents, retailers and leaders hoping this will revitalize the area which has been plagued with shuttering stores and crime in recent months. (Nearby Whole Foods left the area in April and Nordstrom at the Westfield San Francisco Centre will close this Aug.) Similar to other IKEA locations, the store will have an outside company providing security at the entrances and check-out area.

In addition to IKEA, the full 250,000-square-foot location housing the new store will also include a mall by next spring with dining, a food court, shops and entertainment, alongside a co-working space. This will reportedly be spearheaded by Ingka Centres, IKEA’s parent/sister company.