The revelations of the reborn IKEA at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport, which is being converted into a shopping center by Fourlis Group were held yesterday during a special event. As explained by the president of the Fourlis Group, Vassilis Fourlis, within the wider strategy of the Swedish furniture and home equipment group IKEA for smaller stores, the new retail hub of the Fourlis group at the airport houses stores IKEA, Frame, Intersport and Holland & Barrett, employs 330 employees, while visitors have access to technology products, home appliances, sports and casual clothing and footwear, vitamins and nutritional supplements.

The new renovated IKEA in the commercial park of the Athens airport operates on an area of ​​15,000 sq.m. and employs 250 workers. According to what Mr. Fourlis mentioned, the investment in this particular point gives surplus value to all the concepts that have a presence in the area. Specifically for IKEA, he said that it shows a 30% increase in sales after the summer, while he predicted a positive course for the sales of all the stores of the new retail hub.

It is noted that last month the Fourlis Group inaugurated the new IKEA Patra store, which is housed in an area of ​​7,200 sq.m. and has over 5,000 codes and the operation of the new IKEA in Heraklion, Crete, on an area of ​​approximately 12,000 sq.m., as well as the new IKEA in Elliniko, which is being developed by Trade Estates, follows.

At the same time, within the airport commercial park, Plaisio opened its largest and most complete store with an area of ​​3,000 m2, thus maximizing its presence in Eastern Attica. In this store, which employs 40 workers, the sophisticated and modern approach of Plaisio in the field of retail trade is presented for the first time in its entirety. According to what the managing director of the company, Costas Gerardos, said, this is the 26th store of the chain, while the investment reached 1 million euros. It is also the second store to be added to the network this year, after the opening of the new store that opened in Ioannina last August and is part of investments of around 30 million euros, which the company has launched for the period 2024-2026. The company’s investment plan includes, among other things, the development of 10 stores.

The new store Intersport in the Airport shopping park, is the 61st store of the Intersport network. It is 1,000 sq.m., employs 10 workers and is an ideal destination for all needs related to sports and sporting goods, as well as many other lifestyle choices of its visitors.

H Holland & Barrett, in the airport shopping park has the 10th store of the network in Greece and presents to the public its comprehensive range of innovative vitamins & nutritional supplements, sports supplements, natural beauty products and food & beverages, with the main goal of making health and wellness a way of life for everyone. As Fourlis Group executives noted, the brand has only been present in the Greek market for two years and the performance exceeds initial expectations. Last year they opened three stores and this year they opened seven. The shop-in-shops that have been developed in the AB Vassilopoulos network are also moving above the targets. Three are already operating in large supermarkets of the chain and will be developed further. It is noted that H&B products are also placed in the stores of the Intersport network on a pilot basis.