(Yicai) Jan. 7 -- Ikea said it will close seven stores in the Chinese mainland from next month, as the Danish home furnishings giant shifts away from opening big stores toward smaller city-center outlets in response to a changing retail market.

A store will be closed in each of Guangzhou, Harbin, Nantong, Ningbo, Shanghai, Tianjin, and Xuzhou from Feb. 2, Ikea China announced today. After these closures, it will still have 41 outlets in China and will serve over one billion customers via online platforms.

Customers in these cities can continue to buy Ikea products and enjoy its services through online channels or at brick-and-mortar stores in other cities, the company pointed out. “China has always been one of the company’s most important strategic markets,” it said.

Ikea plans a network of targeted, smaller outlets in Chinese city centers to better reach urban shoppers, with a focus on Beijing and Shenzhen. Over the next two years, the retailer aims to open more than 10 such stores, including one in Dongguan next month and one in Beijing’s Tongzhou district in April, it said.

Ikea will invest CNY160 million (USD22.9 million) in China in fiscal 2026, with about 70 percent of that earmarked for pricing of its best-selling products, the company said.

In fiscal 2025, Ikea China’s online business accounted for just over a quarter of the total. Last August, the brand launched on Chinese e-commerce platform JD.Com.

Editor: Futura Costaglione