Ikea Preston: this is everything we know about furniture giant's plans for a store Deepdale Trade Park

The Swedish flat-pack giant announced in October that one of its new Plan and Order Points (POP) would be opening in the city. A planning application submitted to Preston City Council then revealed the store would be situated in Unit M1, which was occupied by Toolstation until 2019. The scaled-down store off Blackpool Road would mainly be used for click and collect, with a small part of the 520 sq m unit being given over to kitchen and bedroom planning services. The focus will be on bespoke kitchen and wardrobe designs, although customers will be able to get help planning any room in their home. Customer orders will be transported to the customer’s home, or made available for collection to another convenient point of delivery.

Subsequently, the superstore, which will be based at Deepdale Trade Park, was granted planning permission in March this year by Preston City Council. As part of the planning permission, work must start by March 2026.

The permitted opening times are 10am to 9pm on Monday - Saturday and 11am to 5pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays. An Ikea spokesman told the Post the company would be sharing more information about its plans for Preston “in due course”. “We will be sharing further information in due course regarding Preston however, unfortunately we are unable to disclose details at this stage,” the spokesman added.

What is Ikea and where did the name originate from?

IKEA is a Swedish-based, multinational group of companies that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture, appliances and home accessories. Started in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad, it has been the world's largest furniture retailer since 2008. The brand used by the group is derived from an acronym that consists of the founder's initials, and those of Elmtaryd, the family farm where he was born, and the nearby village Agunnaryd. The first store opened in 1958 in Älmhult, Sweden.

How will the Preston store operate and will there be jobs available?

The Swedish flat-pack giant announced in October that one of its new Plan and Order Points (POP) would be opening in the city. The scaled-down store off Blackpool Road would mainly be used for click and collect, with a small part of the 520 sq m unit being given over to kitchen and bedroom planning services. This is a new trading concept for IKEA, with Preston being one of the first locations to pilot it. Five full-time jobs would also be on

offer.

Are there any other stores in Lancashire and why is it so popular?

There are around 460 IKEA stores in 63 countries. At present, there are no stores in Lancashire, with the closest being Warrington or Manchester. The successful Swedish furniture brand has become a household name due to affordable pricing that people can put together themselves. Customers also love the meatballs from the cafeterias which have now become an IKEA icon.