Tampa Beach goers recently found another of IKEA’s creative ad campaigns had washed up on their shores 
.
Wonder how many people took advantage of some of the shade? And Where do you thinkn they got those ENOURMOUS bottles?! Nice sand scuplture too…
Get ready! It’s another IKEA USA store in the south! IKEA Tampa, to be the largest IKEA in Florida, is scheduled to open its doors on May, 6th, 2009 at 9am. IKEA fans can begin lining up at 9am on Monday, May 4th in advance of the opening!
From the Tampa Bay Business Journal, IKEA Tampa to Open Its Doors on May 6th:
Ikea will open its Tampa location on May 6. It will be the company’s third in Florida, following stores in Orlando and Sunrise.
The 353,000-square-foot Tampa store is located on 29 acres along Adamo Drive at 22nd Street and the Crosstown Expressway.
The home furnishings store began recruiting staff in January after naming Monica Varela as manager in December. It will employ about 400 people. Its construction created about 500 jobs, a release said.
The store will feature 10,000 exclusively designed items, 49 room settings and three model home interiors. It will also include a 350-seat restaurant.
Ikea first announced plans to build a store in Tampa in March 2007. The company operates 290 stores worldwide, including 36 in the United States.
We’ve already received some interest in blogging about the opening and at/from the opening – if you’re interested, just email us at Submissions@positivefanatics.com. Look forward to hearing from you!
So far, IKEA has stated that IKEA Tampa will be opening Summer 2009, but on the IKEA Group Corporate site, there’s a May 2009 Opening indicated. Could it be that IKEA will come early to Tampa?
Let’s hope so! By the way…we’re looking for local guest bloggers who would be interested in blogging about the upcoming opening of the IKEA Tampa location in Ybor City. Interested? Contact us!
According to a press release dated today, January 6, 2009, IKEA Tampa is now officially hiring for the new IKEA store to be opened in the Tampa Bay area in Summer 2009.
TAMPA, Fla. – (Business Wire) IKEA, the world’s leading home furnishings retailer, today announced it has begun the recruitment process for its future Tampa store, set to open Summer 2009 in the Ybor City-area. Candidates interested in working at the future IKEA Tampa – the Swedish company’s 3rdstore and restaurant destination in Florida, 6th in the Southeast, and 37th in the United States – should look online (www.IKEA-USA.com) for all available positions at the future store. Candidates without access to a home computer are encouraged to visit a local library for online computer access.
“We are thrilled to offer interested jobseekers diverse positions with limitless opportunity at a global company,” said Monica Varela, store manager of the future IKEA Tampa. “At IKEA, we realize that the ability to do the things in life that bring success and happiness is extremely valuable to our coworkers.”
While IKEA Tampa progresses through construction and outfitting, a variety of positions are open to local residents. Prospective coworkers are welcome to apply for the nearly 400 diverse positions as postings are available in: home furnishings sales, interior decoration, customer service, safety and security, cashiers, maintenance, goods flow, receiving, warehouse and stock replenishment. Also, setting itself apart from other retailers in the area, IKEA Tampa will offer – among the 400 total positions to be hired for the store – approximately 75 food service opportunities in its Restaurant, Swedish Foodmarket, Café Bistro and coworker cafeteria.
Named in FORTUNE’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list (three consecutive years), Working Mother magazine’s annual list of the “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers” (four consecutive years) and Training magazine’s annual “Top 100” ranking of companies that excel at human capital development (five consecutive years), IKEA places value and emphasis on coworkers’ personal lives and the importance of a work/life balance.
The Ikea rising near Ybor City, in the Tampa Bay area, now has the familiar blue walls, a store manager and enough qualified candidates in the hopper to fill all 53 management jobs. The Swedish furniture giant says the 353,000-square-foot building, which will be the biggest Ikea in Florida, is on schedule for a summer opening.
The store will be the chain’s first with an expanded Swedish foods department after a successful test in Boston.
The hiring process starts this winter for the other 350 full- and part-time jobs. The company points to its website, ikea.com, for dates when applications will be accepted. Read more…
Its final: no IKEA for Orlando, at least for now:
“Officials with Scandinavian furniture store Ikea International say they want to put a few rumors to rest in Orlando.
Ever since a January report (published by a local paper, though not this one) announced that Ikea bought up 30 acres of land near the Mall at Millenia, businesspeople and homeowners alike scrambled for more information.
Problem is, Ikea’s camp says the company did no such thing. Though the retailer announced it is definitely making a Florida appearance once it can find suitable land in South Florida, it has no plans — yet — for the Orlando area.
“We recognize the customer base in Central Florida,” says spokesman Joseph Roth, “but South Florida has a larger customer base with its population.”
Last year, 310 million people visited Ikea worldwide. On some Sundays in Britain, according to one estimate, almost twice as many people visit an Ikea branch as attend church…”
Orlando Business Journal
Well, at least you can take a hot-air balloon ride
