Promotions drive throngs to flagship opening
By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, January 27, 2003
Conshohocken, Pa. — The opening of the new Ikea store here drew thousands of consumers and scores of singers eager to shop the metro Philadelphia flagship store and help out local schools.
With a bevy of opening-week promotions, the 325,000-square-foot store attracted enough new and previous customers to meet sales and traffic targets, although Ikea won't say exactly what those targets were.
"We were quite thrilled with the outcome," said Clive Cashman, Ikea U.S. spokesman. He wouldn't say how many people came through the doors during the opening week that began Jan. 15. He noted the store is expected to do $100 million in sales its first year, compared with $71 million in sales at the Plymouth Meeting, Pa., store it replaced.
The new store is more than twice the size of the Plymouth Meeting unit, with 9,000 items, 46 rooms displays and five whole-home displays.
Ikea opened the store with a traditional Swedish log sawing — akin to a ribbon-cutting — by Ikea executives.
Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who plays Meadow Soprano on HBO's "The Sopranos" and is starring in "Beauty and the Beast" on Broadway, was on hand for the log-sawing and to kick off a six-day singing marathon at the store called "The True Philadelphia Stars: Keep the Music Alive."
Ikea is donating $25,000 to music programs at five area schools as a result of community participation in the marathon.
Other opening events and promotions included:
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Free Ikea Pöang chairs ($79 each) to the first 100 people in line.
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Cash lane bingo: Every hour during opening week, a randomly selected customer at one of the 28 cash checkout lanes received the entire purchase for free.
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An Jan. 16 appearance by Philadelphia Eagles fullback Cecil Martin, who collected musical instruments for Strings for Schools, which supports music programs throughout greater Philadelphia.
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A $500 store gift certificate, awarded to the consumer who produced the oldest receipt from the former Plymouth Meeting store.
