Welsh store manager Chris Burman has been in Arlon since September 2019. / © Josh Oudendijk
Whether it’s a Kallax shelf or Malm bed, nearly everyone has a little piece of IKEA in their home. Most of it will have come from IKEA Arlon, which, statistically, attracts each customer 3-4 times per year. A Welshman has been at its helm for a year and a half now, overseeing a complete renovation and expansion, and pushing for his store to engage more with the local community.
When IKEA Arlon store manager Christopher Burman first came across RTL Today’s April Fools article claiming that an elected Belgian official, Minister Billy Malm of the Grand Regional Cooperative Ministry of Fixtures and Fittings, provided answers to the long-lasting question whether Luxembourg residents could cross the border to visit the furniture store, he forged a plan: How I can I get my colleagues to believe this story? He opened up Microsoft Teams and, in a serious tone, forwarded the link to other co-workers, stressing how he’d been trying to get in touch with minister Malm, to no avail. However, not everyone responded by pointing out it was April Fools' Day. “To this day there are people out there who think I’m crazy and believed the story”, Burman chuckles.
Born in Wales, Burman has been with IKEA for 16 years, working at stores in Leeds, Madrid, Milan, Siegen, Dortmund and Rostock before taking up the top job in Arlon in September of 2019. He resides in Luxembourg with his wife Vicky and their children Isabella, Luca and Felix. He is an active member of the Luxembourg Expats Facebook Group, a space which has often hosted the fiercely debated “Can I go to IKEA?” question (which we tried to answer ourselves as well). While he prefers to stay out of most conversations, he keeps an eye on the trends and occasionally reaches out to people in a private message: “There was one woman whose sofa got delivered without legs, so we solved it”, he says. He is still surprised by the sheer amount of interest and almost cult-like following for the furniture giant. It’s not surprising: Last year, TNS Ilres ranked IKEA as the most powerful furniture brand in the Greater Region.
With 55%-65% of IKEA customers coming from Luxembourg, the Grand Duchy is a big market for the Arlon store. In total, 1.4 million customers visit the store each year, prior to the pandemic. For two years now they have been delivering to Luxembourg, and Burman is pushing for even more accessibility and presence in the Greater Region. A store in Luxembourg itself in the future, then? “It would be too close [geographically],” says Burman, however not ruling out some sort of hub or Luxembourg base that would be linked to IKEA Arlon.
The showrooms are undergoing major renovations. / © Josh Oudendijk
The border presence of the brand comes with great advantages to Luxembourg customers. 90% of all purchases at IKEA Arlon can be delivered from direct stock, and do not have to be driven down from a Brussels warehouse. With this, “we’re in a unique position”, he explains. An expansion of an additional 2,000m2 is in the planning for the current building to speed up deliveries.
Inside, as part of its renewal process, the first in its 15-year existence, IKEA Arlon is undergoing major renovation: “We’re currently in week 5 of modernisation, we’re done after 11 weeks”. Every showroom is modernised for an enhanced customer experience, combining both physical and digital elements. Whereas originally furniture was often placed around a central, grey walkway with the classic follow-the-arrow, visitors can now wander through renewed living rooms, office spaces, kitchens and bathrooms - it’s all become more ‘real’ to reflect actual living circumstances. A dedicated team of in-house interior designers sketch out each room and get to work on completing the project. Large screens should push digital interaction and help customers with additional product information.
Leading your editor through the new spaces (while other customers rush through under 30 minutes, a national guideline currently in place), Burman explains that the Covid-19 pandemic has made home furnishing more relevant than ever before, changing the way we live and work. “We used to have these dummy laptops sitting on an office desk. But now they should be on a dining table, or in the living room, because not everyone has the work space.” For their renovation project, they conducted home visits to see how people are currently living, and what potential future solutions could be.
© Josh Oudendijk
Burman arrived in Arlon just before the pandemic hit, but is satisfied with how the store coped with such an unprecedented year: “When we started back up [after lockdown], demand was higher than supply. We put up a tent for click&collect, our e-commerce quadrupled.” His 350-strong, international team remained positive and motivated throughout, Burman says. The store now offers free virtual planning, connecting customers to an IKEA employee with camera and screen sharing, covering the in-store service many make use of. Overall, however, in-store purchases still make up 90% of sales, but this will undoubtedly tilt towards e-commerce, according to the store manager.
Beside growing its e-commerce business and modernising the showroom, a major step for Burman and his team is to engage more with the local community. “Our parking lot is completely empty on Sundays, how can we make it available to others?” he asks. He aims to support other businesses in the neighbourhood with the resources that IKEA could potentially provide. There are no clues yet about potential events, but Burman assures us that things are in the pipeline. “To have fun together”, that’s the goal, all with Swedish meatballs and lingonberry jam. Reopening IKEA Arlon fully will be the first big step.
