IKEA to make West Bengal a sourcing hub

Furniture giant IKEA is exploring the possibility of making West Bengal a sourcing hub for natural fibre and bamboo, state Finance Minister Amit Mitra said at the MSME Conclave this week. According to a presentation made by an IKEA official at the conclave, IKEA's purchasing operations from India stood at Rs 30 billion ($428 million) in the 2017-18 fiscal year. IKEA sources around Rs 20 billion ($285 million) of natural fibre and bamboo for its furniture. The company has expressed interest in procuring the products from bamboo- and natural fibre-rich Bengal, provided it met quality norms, Mitra said. As the next step, IKEA - buoyed up by the response to its first store in Hyderabad - could look at setting up stores in the state, according to reports. In April, IKEA had written to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, expressing interest in setting up one-two stores with investments of over Rs 20 billion ($285 million).