[rdaner]

Has anyone been to this store? I wont be long until a Toronto location opens.

Danish rival beats IKEA into London

Mon, April 23, 2007

By HANK DANISZEWSKI, SUN MEDIA



Swedish furniture giant IKEA may be snubbing London, but Danish rival JYSK is happy to move in to the market.

JYSK (pronounced Yisk) is opening its first London store on May 12 in a portion of the former Canadian Tire store near the Masonville mall.

The 30,000 square foot store will feature bed, bath and houseware items as well as Scandinavian-style home furnishings.

JYSK Canada CEO Pablo Reich said London shoppers who now travel to the nearest IKEA store in Burlington will like what JYSK has to offer.

“We target similar price points with similar looks . . . but we go into markets where IKEA is not present,†said Reich.

Rumours have been floating for years that IKEA is building a store in London. In 2004 a online petition asking for an IKEA store in London gathered over 7,000 names. But IKEA officials said at the time London is not a “viable†market for the chain.

JYSK was founded in 1979 by Lars Larsen, a native of the Jutland peninsula in Denmark. The name is derived from the Danish adjective for the region.

JYSK now has 1,200 stores worldwide including 31 in Canada. The chain entered the Canadian market in British Columbia 10 years ago and has been gradually moving east, opening it first Ontario store last year.

Reich said the Masonville store will employ about 35 people. He said he is confident London will be a good market and he expects the chain will open a second store in south London in the future.

JYSK is the third outlet to move into the building vacated by Canadian Tire last year when it opened a new store in Hyde Park. Marble Slab Creamery and Winners have also moved into the space.

 

[Skeezix]

I was in the Whitby Jysk, about 6 months ago. I can honestly say that I remember very little about it. So, I guess it wasn't that great or memorable.

 

[ShonTron]

Has anyone been to this store? I wont be long until a Toronto location opens.

I've never been to one (JYSK), one opened at Queen and 410 in Brampton late last year. Had no idea what it was until today.

I like the feature of clicking the icon next to the quote to see the post referred to. No searching required!

 

[James]

Don't ask how I stumbled upon this ancient thread but I did.

So Jysk...I visited the Scarborough location at Cedarbrae Mall near Markham Road & Lawrence Avenue East not too long ago. We heard about the store being an "alternative to IKEA" through the grapevine and decided to go check it out.

My first impressions were that of a discount dollar store. Perusing the merchandise, some of it wasn't bad but some of it looked really low quality. Some designs are similar to IKEA's so you can definitely find some good bargains. All in all, the store wasn't really all that well-kept and seemed in disarray.

While I do agree that one can nicely furnish their house with items from Jysk and not break the bank, the whole shopping experience here was rather disappointing.

 

[Bruno Republic]

JYSK makes IKEA look high-end. Seriously.

I realize they're aiming to be lower-cost and obviously there's a market for that, but every time I've been in one, I've had the same experience: I spot a few items which look appealing from a distance, but up close they look so cheap and flimsy that they're not worth what little they're charging for them.

 

[gabe]

The only thing i have bought from JYSK is outdoor solar lights. They work pretty good and they are really cheap. My solar lights get stolen every summer, so i always try to find the cheapest set of lights.

 

[FAC33]

Has anyone been to this store? I wont be long until a Toronto location opens.

There's been a Jysk in Whitby (Thickson Rd. and Victoria, just south of the 401) for years (5+)

It's sort of IKEA lite. Much, much smaller than IKEA, lots of build your own furniture and quirky small goods. Also, no meatballs or cinnamon rolls.