A sister company to Swedish furniture retailer Ikea is on the hunt for investments in New Zealand, and not necessarily of the retail kind. While there’s no news on when exactly Ikea’s stylish shops will open in New Zealand, Ingka Investments Management NZ and Ingka Investments Forest Assets NZ were quietly registered with the Companies Office last December. Source: Stuff NZ
Both are described as related to forestry and are owned by Ingka Investments, a Dutch-based investment arm of Ingka Group, Ikea’s largest owner-operator.
An Ikea spokesperson said: “Ingka Group is considering different opportunities, including forestry investments in the country. We will share more information as it becomes available.”
Ingka Investments was “constantly looking for new opportunities that are linked to our core business,” and ones which supported its sustainability goals and climate commitments.
Overseas, Ingka Investments holds a diverse portfolio including stakes in a truck sharing business, a logistics co-ordinates fi rm and various plastics recycling businesses.
According to its website, it invests in both early stage and mature companies, and “in people before companies,” only aligning with businesses that share its values.
Ikea itself remains a bit of a mystery in New Zealand, after announcing its launch two years ago and promising three stores.
In the Australian Financial Review last month, Ikea’s outgoing Australian/New Zealand chief executive Jan Gardberg set pulses racing by saying: “We are on the way there [to New Zealand] in the next three to four months.”
