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Less than two years after opening and exciting city dwellers all over town, the Ikea in Queens is officially closing.
Citing "the changing needs of our customers" in an announcement on its website, the chain revealed that the location will shutter on December 3, 2022.
What's perhaps even sadder is the fact that, once the 115,000-square-foot outpost inside Rego Center mall actually closes, the only Ikea left in business in New York City will be the 6.5-acre one in Red Hook, Brooklyn, that opened back in 2008.
As fans of the Swedish company know, the destination in Queens was originally announced in 2020 but the launch was delayed to January of 2021 because of the pandemic. In addition to being the very first one in the borough, the store was, at the time, the only in the United States based on a "new, smaller format."
For close to two years, shoppers were able to purchase and take home portable home furnishing accessories curated specifically for New Yorkers with "inspiring" room sets and digital tools focused on sustainable, small-space living. Customers also had the chance to set up home delivery services for an affordable flat fee, schedule appointments with IKEA employees to figure out how to properly organize their kitchens, living rooms and bedrooms. The closing of the store is clearly a big blow to the neighborhood.
Back in 2019, Ikea actually opened another small-format store—officially dubbed Ikea Planning Studio—at 999 Third Avenue by 60th Street on the Upper East Side. The 17,530-square-foot destination, though, closed a bit over a year later because of high rent and low foot traffic.
A bit of good news: according to the Commercial Observer, the iconic brand is still planning on opening a Manhattan location once it finds the right space to do so. Here's to hoping the endeavor will be more successful than previous ones.