Tulsa, Oklahoma: First IKEA in the State Opens at Tulsa Hills With More Than 5,000 Products

Oklahoma's first IKEA opened in Tulsa on Friday, October 23, ending years of drives to Texas for shoppers in the state who wanted the Swedish retailer's furniture and home goods. The store at Tulsa Hills Shopping Center, at 7309 S. Olympia Avenue, is the company's first location in Oklahoma, News 9 reported.

Opening day festivities began at 8 a.m. with raffle giveaways, coffee and treats. The store officially opened at 10 a.m. and stays open until 8 p.m. on Friday. Regular hours from Saturday are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.

What is inside the Tulsa store

The store covers about 51,000 square feet in the space formerly occupied by Belk at Tulsa Hills. It features more than 5,000 products on display, in furnished room settings for the kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom. A little over 3,000 products are ready to take home on the day, including over 250 furniture articles, IKEA Tulsa Market Manager Ben Sandoval told News 9.

"We've got a little over 3000 ready to take home today, including over 250 furniture articles that you can take," Sandoval said. Larger pieces, such as sofas and beds, and the rest of the IKEA range can be ordered online or in store for free pickup or low cost home delivery. The store also has a central planning area where customers can meet one on one with IKEA staff, and a Swedish food offer for shoppers who want it in store or to take home.

Built with a local staff and a local look

More than 60 employees work at the Tulsa store, and the majority come from the Tulsa area, News 9 reported. IKEA said it researched the local market while designing the spaces customers walk through, so the room settings connect with Oklahoma shoppers.

"Anytime we open a store, we actually work with our marketing team to get market design research on who our local customers are. And then we work with our interior design team to localize the solutions," Sandoval said.

The food counter carries the item many shoppers ask about first. "The meatballs," IKEA Country Food Manager Paul Fite said. Fite said the meatballs served in the United States are produced in the US, not shipped in from Sweden.

To mark the opening, IKEA U.S. is donating $10,000 to Family and Children's Services, a Tulsa based nonprofit that works with families and children across the region. The store's development was supported by the Tulsa City Council, which approved a $2.5 million spending package for related infrastructure and parking improvements, The Sun reported.

The end of the Texas trip

For regular IKEA shoppers in Oklahoma, the change is simple. A trip that used to mean crossing state lines now ends across town. Deborah Adcock told News 9 the opening has been years in the making.

"I've been wanting one of those to get here for years," Adcock said. "I'm used to the one in Dallas, and we go there quite a bit when we go to Dallas to visit family, and it's huge. I know this one's not as big, but I've heard it's still really nice. So I'm excited."

"Opening IKEA Tulsa is an important milestone in our journey to bring IKEA closer to the many people," said Rob Olson, Deputy Country Retail Manager for IKEA U.S., in the company's announcement. IKEA announced plans for the Tulsa location in February, and the smaller format store now gives the region a pickup and shopping point that it did not have before.