IKEA has started selling products through a third party for the first time in its 77-year history, using Chinese e-commerce platform Tmall.

The furniture retail group said its virtual store on Alibaba’s Tmall was a complement to its own stores and online and app shopping. A six-month test is being carried out initially across the east coast provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui, and the city of Shanghai, Reuters reports.

Tolga Oncu, head of retail at Ingka, which owns most IKEA stores worldwide, told Reuters: “We see this as a good opportunity to become accessible for many more in China, especially in light of what the Chinese digital environment looks like.”

“We are testing this to see ‘how does this impact our brand, how does this impact our infrastructure, our own stores and e-commerce, do we reach new segments ... and of course also what will the result look like’,” he added.

This trial is another attempt to adapt to fast-evolving shopping patterns for IKEA, which until around 10 years ago solely depended on its large out-of-town stores.

Over the past few years, the Swedish group has made a substantial investment in online expansion and new sales channels, such as the shoppable app and inner-city stores.

Should the testing prove successful, IKEA plans to launch the Tmall store in more parts of China. However, according to Jon Abrahamsson Ring, incoming CEO at brand owner Inter IKEA, there are presently no plans to sell through third parties in other markets.

“In other markets there are other conditions. So we don’t see this as a starting point for a full roll-out, or a full commitment to this type of channel,” Abrahamsson Ring said.

The IKEA store on Tmall will contain some 3,800 of the firm’s 9,500 products, as well as services such as delivery and assembly.

Over half of IKEA’s 30 stores in China have been closed since January due to coronavirus. The lockdown in large parts of the country has resulted in more consumers opting for home delivery in order to avoid large shopping centres.

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