Ikea at Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi will open on November 10. Reuters
Ikea at Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi will open on November 10. Reuters
Ikea at Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi will open on November 10. Reuters
Ikea at Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi will open on November 10. Reuters

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Opening date for new Abu Dhabi Ikea confirmed

The new opening at Al Wahda Mall is set to be a 'more convenient and compact store' in the city centre

Farah Andrews
Farah Andrews
Dubai

November 11, 2020

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Latest: Inside Ikea Al Wahda Mall: an exclusive look at Abu Dhabi's latest store

Abu Dhabi's second Ikea is set to open at Al Wahda Mall on November 10, the Swedish furniture giant confirmed today. The store will be the first in the centre of the city.

The new outlet will be spread over 2,100 square metres on the first floor of the mall. There is already an Ikea at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi and two stores in Dubai, one at Festival City and another at Festival Plaza mall.

A smaller Ikea, compared to the mega-showrooms elsewhere in the UAE, the store will stock "approximately 2,000 low and medium sized ready-to-assemble furniture and home essentials", the company said in a statement. "For all other products, customers will have digital access to the full range and can place their orders in-store to have them delivered or opt for store delivery," it said.

There will be a Swedish cafe at Al Wahda Mall, where customers can enjoy dine-in or take away food. The affordable hot dogs, shawarmas, meatballs and pastries are fan favourites.

"We know that time is of the essence for many people therefore with the mall’s strategic and central location, we will be bringing the Ikea experience closer to people’s homes, in a more convenient and compact store," said Vinod Jayan, Ikea's UAE and Oman managing director.

"Al Wahda Mall remains a top destination for shopping, entertainment and leisure in the heart of Abu Dhabi, so we are thrilled to be able to bring our new Ikea concept store to this location.

"The full size Ikea store in Yas Island, which operates on an area of 33,000 square metres since 2011, will continue to be the go-to destination for the complete inspiring Ikea experience, so our goal is to create a closer glimpse of that experience at the heart of the Abu Dhabi Island."

In December 2019, Ikea opened its third UAE outlet at Festival Plaza mall and revealed it had 90,000 people apply for 200 jobs at the store. Prior to that opening, Jayan also revealed plans for a Sharjah store and an Oman Ikea set to open in 2021.

Look inside Dubai's Ikea, Festival Plaza, which opened in December 2019. At 35,000 square metres, it's the biggest in the UAE:

  • Inside the warehouse area at the new Ikea, in Festival Plaza mall, Jebel Ali, Dubai, during a preview tour on Tuesday, November 26, ahead of the store's December 2019 opening. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    Inside the warehouse area at the new Ikea, in Festival Plaza mall, Jebel Ali, Dubai, during a preview tour on Tuesday, November 26, ahead of the store's December 2019 opening. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • Areas are already ready for customers. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    Areas are already ready for customers. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • The Festival Plaza Ikea will be the only store regionally to have Swedish steps. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    The Festival Plaza Ikea will be the only store regionally to have Swedish steps. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • The till area is still awaiting finishing touches. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    The till area is still awaiting finishing touches. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • Vinod Jayan, Ikea's UAE and Oman managing director speaks during the preview tour. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    Vinod Jayan, Ikea's UAE and Oman managing director speaks during the preview tour. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • Bed display areas are ready for customers. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    Bed display areas are ready for customers. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • A display of children's plates. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    A display of children's plates. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • Outside the Jebel Ali Ikea store. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    Outside the Jebel Ali Ikea store. Chris Whiteoak / The National
  • At 35,000 square metres, it will be. the largest Ikea in the UAE. Chris Whiteoak / The National
    At 35,000 square metres, it will be. the largest Ikea in the UAE. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

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