IKEA plans giant river-connected warehouse in Paris

Swedish home furniture and furnishings retail giant IKEA is investing €120 million in the construction of a 72,000 sqm state-of-the-art warehouse on the banks of the river Seine from where it plans to use river transport to replenish supplies to city centre stores in Paris and deliver to customers who have placed an order online or in-store.

The facility is scheduled to enter service in 2026 and will be built on a plot of land made available by French ports group HAROPA, which manages the French ports of Le Havre, Rouen and Paris.

Commenting on the giant warehouse project, Emma Recco, IKEA's director of Business Development and Strategy, said: “IKEA France has already committed to delivering 100% of its Parisian customers with zero-emission solutions by the end of 2021, and throughout France by 2025. This innovative warehouse will allow us to reconcile the development of our business, particularly e-commerce, with this ambition for sustainable logistics over the long term.

“We are very proud to sign the agreement with HAROPA-Ports de Paris for the creation of this warehouse in Limay. We are continuing a quality partnership (with HAROPA), committed to the long term, which will be a major asset for the innovative projects we wish to carry out.”

HAROPA said: “This new customer distribution centre will support IKEA's growth, while contributing to its ambition to develop its business in a sustainable way.

“Paris, and more widely the Greater Paris conurbation, is a priority market for IKEA France. IKEA is developing an omnichannel strategy, based on a balance between its physical and digital contact points, to meet the needs of its customers. The creation of this new distribution centre will be essential for IKEA to support the development of its business, especially e-commerce, and to offer its customers fast, reliable and sustainable deliveries.”

In 2019, IKEA began participating in a river-borne distribution service on the Seine using an electric-powered vessel operating from the Gennevilliers river port by French sustainable freight transport specialist Fludis. The eco-friendly barge service on the Seine was launched with the intention to deliver up to 3,000 parcels daily to B2B and B2C customers located in the centre of Paris, while contributing to the reduction of traffic congestion and CO2 emissions.

An electric-powered vessel operates from the Gennevilliers river port, beginning its ‘milk run’ at 5.30am and taking in four stops in order to serve several districts or ‘arrondissements’ at the heart of the French capital.

At each port of call on the riverside quays, a team of 15 delivery staff aboard the barge load parcels on to cargo bikes – each with a capacity of up to 250 kilos and part-electricity powered – before coming ashore to carry out the ‘last-mile’ leg in the logistics process. On completing their delivery rounds they meet up with the barge at its next stop on the banks of the Seine.

Launch customers included IKEA; Lyreco, a distributor of office supplies and workplace products; and recycling specialist, Paprec, which collects items such as used batteries and light bulbs.

IKEA opened a warehouse at the Gennevilliers port in 2019 in order to streamline its supply chain to the central Paris market.