Nurettin Acar was born in Beytüşşebap, on the Turkish border with Iran and Iraq, within a nomadic community – his official date of birth, February 1969, is approximate. From there he progressed with a small family business selling rugs, to working for Ikea in Switzerland, Turkey and now in Spain, where he runs the subsidiary of the Swedish multinational furniture company. With a degree in Economics, he speaks Kurdish, Turkish, English, French, German and is learning Spanish.
Spain is the test bench for the new commercial model that Ikea is developing and that will arrive in Barcelona this summer with the first urban stores on Avenida Diagonal and the Glòries shopping center. Acar attends to La Vanguardia in the establishment on Calle Goya in Madrid, the store model that will be implemented in the Catalan capital.
He started in the world of sales working in a small family business selling carpets in Antalya (Turkey), together with his father. Has that experience helped you for his current position at Ikea?
Absolutely. I started working in the family business as a young child, cleaning carpets. And from there I have taken three things. The first, the passion for home and retail. I saw that it made people happy, that it contributed to their having a more comfortable home. That's something I also feel at Ikea. Second, dealing with people. I learned to listen to the client and understand what their needs are. And finally, I understood that everything is possible. We built this small business with my father, without having any kind of financial strength behind it. And we move forward.
You have worked for Ikea in Switzerland, Turkey and now in Spain. Is there much difference between these markets?
Many. Despite the fact that Switzerland and Spain are in Europe, each market has its characteristics due to the economic context and cultural habits. Switzerland has a very stable economy and environment, so you can make a five-year plan and it will only deviate by two percent. In Turkey you can develop a plan, and the next day have to review everything. The economic environment is very busy. There is inflation, the deficit... In Turkey we sold more assembly services. In Switzerland, on the other hand, people like to do things with their hands more, so we sell more products.
And what surprised you about the Spanish market when you arrived here?
Perhaps one of our best-selling products in Spain is the Oftast plate set. People highly appreciate the food and culinary culture here. And of course, we sell much more summer furniture than in other countries due to the good weather.
They are immersed in a process of changing their commercial network in Spain, with smaller stores in the center of cities and customer service points. What is this new strategy for?
to customer needs. Spain is the first Ikea market in which we are implementing this model, we are pioneers. We observe that buying habits have changed. People want proximity, more personalized attention and also buy more online, but they demand accompaniment. And at Ikea we want to be closer to people and reach all corners of the country. There are areas of Spain where they are not familiar with Ikea products, and we want to get there. Our strategy is that there is an Ikea contact point within fifteen minutes on foot or 30 minutes by car. We have started to deploy this network in Catalonia, Madrid and Andalusia. Then other areas will come.
How much are you going to invest to develop this new network in Spain?
Initially, we calculated 150 million euros until 2025, with the creation of 1,500 new jobs. But we have just reviewed our plans and finally the investment will amount to 300 million until 2025, of which 90 will be allocated to logistics. In addition to opening new contact points and reinforcing the digital channel, we are going to improve our logistics network and expand the capacity of existing stores. Between the end of June and the beginning of July we will open our new urban store on Avenida Diagonal in Barcelona, and then in the Glòries shopping center. And more will come in the future.
Are large stores on the outskirts of cities losing appeal?
Last year, in financial year 2022, 43 million people in Spain visited our stores, seven million more than the previous year. So we're also gaining visits in our existing units. But now the client wants more comfort and to have us closer. They are complementary things.
One of the recurring complaints about Ikea is the customer service, the design of more complex rooms, such as kitchens or bathrooms, and the subsequent assembly. What are you going to do to improve this?
Our Barcelona market is playing a leading role here. We have a team of designers in our stores in Barcelona and now also in Madrid. In addition, we have created the Home Furnishing Academy in Barcelona, to develop knowledge about room design.
In 2022 they obtained record sales in Spain with a turnover of 1,820 million euros, but prices also rose. Does the price increase continue this year?
After the pandemic and with the war in Ukraine, we have faced supply interruptions, rising gas prices, and the transport and raw materials crisis. As a result, we had to adapt our prices. But as of last September we have started to lower prices. Our goal is to create products that as many people as possible can afford.
How are sales going this 2023? Do you see signs of slowdown in consumption?
We have started this year very well and we are well ahead of what we expected. In recent weeks we have observed a certain slowdown, because leisure is occupying a large part of consumer spending. However, we are recovering again.
What is Ikea's best-selling product?
In Catalonia, the Oftast plate and the Gunde folding chair. Throughout Spain, the Ofstat plate and bowl and the Boomerang hanger.
How many products did they sell in total last year?
In fiscal year 2022 we sold 164 million units.
