Retailers have fled Downtown San Francisco, but Ikea is excited about opening there.
The Scandinavian furniture seller Ikea is trying to beat the odds as retailers leave Downtown San Francisco.
Ikea thinks it can succeed where other well-known retailers have closed or made public exit threats.
A news statement says that the first company to sell flat-pack furniture wants the downtown store to open on August 23.
A story from the San Francisco Standard in May says that since 2019, almost half of the stores in downtown San Francisco have closed.
The study says that most of the closures happened because people who lived Downtown left the area when the coronavirus pandemic was at its worst.
ABC News says that Nordstrom, Old Navy, and Whole Foods are among the shops that have left the area.
Nordstrom told its workers in a memo that it was leaving the downtown area because of the “dynamics” of the area, but it didn’t say much more than that, according to Fox Business.
San Francisco is safer than some of its similar cities because there are less serious crimes there. For example, the homicide rate is lower than in large American towns like Atlanta, Philadelphia, Houston, and Detroit.
But, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, property crime in San Francisco is much higher than the national rate. Burglaries are 67% higher than the average across the country, and steals of cars are 36% higher.
Last year, the Chronicle did a poll and found that almost half of the people in San Francisco have been victims of such crimes.
Ikea has high hopes for the 52,000 square foot space, even though it will be hard.
Arda Akalin, the market manager for IKEA in San Francisco, said in a statement, “We are so excited to welcome our neighbors to our new store.” “We appreciate the excitement and support from the community, and we can’t wait for our customers to see the new store full of affordable home furnishings and solutions that reflect who San Franciscans are and how they live.”
The Downtown store is part of a $2.2 billion plan to open 17 new shops, nine of which are smaller and geared toward casual shoppers. The planned location in San Francisco fits into this group.
Akalin told the Wall Street Journal, “We do think it’s a good place to live.” “Our goal for that area is to bring in more jobs, more people, and more business.”
Ikea will have three stores in the Bay Area when the San Francisco store opens. The other two are in Emeryville and East Palo Alto.
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