Ikea to Open First Store in New Zealand 50 Years After Australia

Ikea will open its first store in New Zealand in December, offering its flat-pack furniture and Swedish meatballs in largest city Auckland some 50 years after it entered neighboring Australia.

The 34,000 square-meter store will open at the Sylvia Park shopping center on Dec. 4, Ingka Group — the largest Ikea franchisee — said on Thursday. An estimated 500 jobs are being created.