The Ikea store at Doha Festival City.

Ikea, a part of Al Futtaim group of companies, has welcomed 3mn visitors to the Swedish concept store in Doha Festival City over the past two years, of which almost 1.5mn visited last year alone.
John Kersten, managing director, Ikea Qatar, UAE, Egypt and Oman, said: “During these 24 months, with the help of our annual Ikea Catalogue, we have reached Qatari homes through our products and inspirational solutions.
“We hope to have also reached Qatari hearts by partnering with brands such as Qatar Charity to ensure we make a difference for the local community. It has been a long and enriching journey so far and we will strive to continue offering well designed, functional and affordable furniture and accessories to the many in Qatar.”
An array of events has been organised to mark the second anniversary. Customers are invited to take pictures with their favourite Ikea products and share it with Ikea on Instagram or Facebook using #IKEADOHAturns2 for a chance to win gift vouchers valued up to QR10,000.
Shoppers in store will receive QR100 gift vouchers for every QR1,000 worth of purchase made. The anniversary day is to be marked on Wednesday with fun activities, prizes, and free breakfast among others.
Over the past two years, the Ikea Restaurant and Café recorded impressive numbers with over 500,000 Swedish meatballs sold last year. Online, www.Ikea.qa has seen significant traffic in 2014 with over 1.5mn site visits. The brand also reached out to consumers through social media channels garnering over 60,000 fans on Facebook and launching Instagram this past February.
Furthering Ikea endeavours in social responsibility, the annual global Soft Toys for Education Campaign supported through Ikea Foundation with Unicef and Save the Children to enrich the lives of children less fortunate was activated in Qatar for the second year running, partnering with Qatar Charity to make the drive more locally relevant.
Ikea operates 366 stores in 47 countries. Globally, at the close of 2014, the total retail sales was €30.1bn (up by 2.7% from 2013).

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