Ikea to build click and collect hub for customers
PLANS to expand IKEA in Wednesbury to meet increasing demand from online customers have been given the go-ahead.
Walsall Council has granted permission for the Swedish flat-pack furniture giants to erect a temporary building containing 51 click-and-collect lockers.
Bosses said the development will create a total of 41 jobs and alleviate the existing problem of a lack of space at the store off Park Lane. They added demand has been growing since the lockdown.
The current click and collect facility can only cater for 20 orders at a time but the new building – which will be in place for 36 months – will hold up to
100 customers’ goods.
In the application, planning agents Quod said: “The proposed C&C facilities are a temporary measure targeted at meeting current pressing customer demands and as a result temporary planning consent is sought. IKEA are reviewing a more permanent solution to respond to the growing customer demand for C&C service.
“The continued popularity of online retail, rising and the impact of Covid-19 amongst other matters, has meant that retailers must be able to adapt quickly to meet changing expectations.
“The demand for C&C has significantly increased at the
IKEA Wednesbury store.
“As a result, the store is currently unable to meet its existing customer demand since there is not sufficient space within the store to hold customers’ orders.”
They added: “The new facilities will allow additional storage space for more orders which will enable IKEA to better meet the needs of their customers.
“In light of the current Covid-19 pandemic, the proposals will make socially distanced shopping easier by giving the existing customers at IKEA the ability to shop without having to enter the store, provide greater flexibility to choice when they shop and avoid peak times, and allows contactless collection for goods being collected from the lockers. IKEA staff will also ensure social distancing is maintained at all times when orders are collected from the storage building by asking customers to remain in their vehicles until they have left the parking bay.”