16. apr. 2023 06:05 – Updated Apr 16 2023 06:06
Belarusian Swed House opened a furniture store in Moscow on Saturday that is a direct copy of Swedish Ikea, with goods that look like Ikea furniture,
Muscovites lined up to enter when the store opened, and were greeted by employees in yellow pique shirts under a blue-and-yellow Swed House trademark logo.
The business idea is to try to become a copy of the real Ikea and replace the Ikea stores that closed after Ikea withdrew from Russia as a result of the war against Ukraine.
– We are not Ikea. We strive to be like Ikea. We have our own brands, our own goods, says Swed House director Mamedali Kasymov. He claims that they also sell original Ikea items that they have come across.
The Belarusian Ikea copycat plans to open five more stores in Moscow before expanding to other cities in Russia next year.
