Ikea Appoints It's Most Revered Man For India Play After making Germany the biggest market for IKEA, Peter Betzel is all set to repeat his success story in India.

After making Germany the biggest market for IKEA, India CEO Peter Betzel is all set to repeat its success story in India. Appointed in March, he has already planned the launch of its first store in Hyderabad this August. "We have a long-term commitment for India and consider it to be one of IKEA's most crucial markets," says Betzel.

Currently, operating with 400 people, they plan to grow as a 15,000 strong team in the coming years. Talking about his personal observations, he remarks, Indians are warm, hospitable, and ready to experiment with their homes and surroundings. "They want to have a good lifestyle and that is evident from the kind of passion they display towards their work and life," Betzel mentions adding, "We are learning a lot from India and in fact, it is making IKEA better in many ways."

As an economy, India is price sensitive and thus he has meticulously designed a pricing strategy to suit its consumers. "We have 500 products below Rs 100 and 1,000 products below Rs 200," Betzel highlights. For India, the company has consciously chosen to localize some of its products for creating a better mass appeal.

Do-It-Yourself being a new concept in India, IKEA will offer assembly, delivery, and kitchen installation services to ensure a smooth purchase experience. "We have collaborated with UrbanClap to cater to our buyers' furniture assembly requirements, besides having an on-demand in-house assembly service team," Betzel adds.

Commenting on the challenges that IKEA may face, he says, "Large locations at a good price will be difficult to find. That coupled with bureaucratic issues could become a pertinent challenge. However, IKEA is here to stay."

(This article was first published in the August 2018 issue of BIZ Experiences Magazine. To subscribe, click here)