Montana Longs For IKEA: The Furniture Giant’s Absence In The Big Sky State

There has been a lot of chatter about Montana getting a location of this famous, much loved furniture retailer. However, it appears that we're NOT getting a location in Montana or anywhere near us, anytime soon.

We're talking about the world's largest furniture retailer, as of 2008. Their blue and yellow buildings can be found all over the planet - but NONE are located in Montana or anywhere surrounding us. (As of this writing, there are no locations in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota.)

The closest IKEA location to Montana is in Draper, Utah. (Draper is south of Salt Lake City, about halfway to Provo, Utah.) There is also an IKEA location in Centennial, Colorado which is just south of Denver.

Montanans are quite keen on getting our own IKEA location, but unfortunately that isn't going to happen in the near future. Yes, IKEA is opening more showrooms in the United States, but their list of 'coming soon' stores still does not include Montana OR any of our neighbor states.

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IKEA's layout is famously enticing - with full room settings that inspire customers to purchase entire room sets. Even though many folks simply walk out with only a bookcase to put together at home, IKEA is incredibly good at selling a particular style and furniture 'vibe'.

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If you've shopped at an IKEA, you know that each of their products has a name - making it easier to remember than some random code number. That naming of items is done on purpose, and has an interesting reason behind it:

"(IKEA) Company founder Kamprad was dyslexic, finding that naming the furniture with proper names and words, rather than a long product code, made the products easier to identify and remember." (wikipedia.com)

So who is getting a new IKEA location? In January of 2024, IKEA announced where they'd open four new locations in the United States. (These new locations are being called "new format" stores.)

"In 2024, IKEA U.S. is excited to welcome customers at new Plan & order points with Pick-up in Austin, Texas, the Atlanta Metropolitan area, two locations in the greater Los Angeles market and more to come." (IKEA.com)

With a shred of luck, the 'Montana area' can hope that the 'more-to-come' part might include a nearby location in the future. The impeccable design of IKEA and their occasionally frustrating assembly instructions are wanted in Montana. Not to mention their tasty in-store restaurants and bistros

Does IKEA still serve meatballs? You bet they do. Items on IKEA's menu include: "Breakfast Plate with Swedish Pancakes. Swedish Meatballs, Served with Mashed Potatoes and Lingonberry Jam. Garlic Lemon Cod. Marinated Salmon Wraps.  Stockholm Salad, Served on Mixed Greens with Marinated Salmon.

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