IKEA where are you?
I keep hearing rumors that IKEA will be opening in Lebanon and I hope they do. It’s really weird why they aren’t open yet but I desperately need to get a kitchen for my new apartment and everything I’ve seen so far is priced more expensive than a brand new Beemer. IKEA, where are you?
Sep 2, 2010
I once asked a friend about this and he said that the Lebanese government would impose huge taxes on IKEA to protect the local furniture industry
Also, a shortage of space could a reason. Them IKEAs is big!
now lebanon did an article on this years ago (maybe it never went to print, as i can’t seem to find it?), but the answer then was that the lebanese market (read: middle class) isn’t big enough to make an ikea store profitable in leb.
When I went to Ikea in the emirates, i asked about this issue and they told me ikea was opened in lebanon in zouk but not like other Ikeas it was just like a client servicing desk and we could order through them Ikea products… anw it’s closed now but I heard that Ikea will open in City Centre i even saw the name on the road panels !!!
I agree with zeydoun. Lebanese Customs reports imported furniture are charged 20-40% custom rates plus 10% VAT. The governments way of protecting the local industry. In a nutshell, the consumers are forced to keep the local inefficient manufacturers in business.
but if you think about it , we already rely heavily on imports , imposing such taxes are necessary if we need to break even , which is not going to happen anytime soon. i small country like lebanon needs to have such restrictions in order to keep jobs
The market is very small in Lebanon.
Ma khass el market wala shi hek, it was going to open in 2006 but the war happened and they cancelled. Now they’re planning to open soon
The one who has ikea franchise to Lebanon is a Kuwaiti company called Al Homaizi; they got it for Kuwait which they already open, Jordan & Lebanon.
They have put lebanon on hold because of the political situation.
However there’s a small distributor in Lebanon who sells storage items for closets, drawers, shoes, bags, etc and few articles “accessories” from the same factory of ikea but of course a whole lot cheaper.
No furniture though!
Hey Michele where is the small distributor? I was planning on getting closet accessories from Kuwait but would make more sense to get them in Lebanon.
The shop is called “Idea” n it’s in kaslik, centre mouddabber, highway side.
But if u wish u can give me ur e-mail address n Idea can send u pics of their available items.
i’m pretty sure the “idea” is a fake franchise , Ikea would be better of sticking to its real name for marketing’s sake :P
Haissam sweetheart, idea is not a fake franchise of ikea; it’s simply a distributor of items that happen to be from the same manufacturer of ikea with cheaper prices.
Plus idea does not sell furniture and kitchen accessories.
Ikea… Sigh!
yes we want Ikea in Lebanon .
We have the lebanese version of Ikea = Akil Bros. (with all due respect)
WE NEED IKEA IN LEBANON…
IKEA…IKEA…IKEA..PLZZZZZZZZZZZ
I HOPE WE HAVE VERY SOON iKEA IN LEBANON REALLY THIS IS DREAMS MANY LEBANESE LIKE ME !
THX
yes, whould be wonderful to have Ikea in lebanon too))))
we want IKEA in Lebanon pleassssssse
I sigh everytime i look at Ikea’s catalogue online…I would literally max out my credit cards if they opened an Ikea in Lebanon!
Hear our cries Ikea!
IKEA in Lebanon… Yes Please!!!