"Ikea is starting to invest now. They have bought a big piece of land for 4 billion Rupees (US $59.6 million) in Navi Mumbai for their store," said Apurva Chandra, a principal secretary of the state industries department.
"They are investing almost 15 billion Rupees (US $223.5 million) here. This will be the first retail store in India," Chandra told PTI. "It will take another year or year and half."
The company expects the Navi Mumbai store to get more than 5 million visitors a year. The company is currently seeking land to set up stores in Delhi and Bengaluru.
Ikea, which has been sourcing from India for its worldwide chain of furniture stores for three decades, plans to add suppliers and double its sourcing volume by 2020. At present, Ikea sources products worth 300 million euros for its global operations from India.
