The Eye of the Archives. 2000: inauguration of the IKEA logistics base in La Maxe

[ Article from the Republican Lorrain, May 3, 2000 ]

Swedish group Ikea yesterday inaugurated its logistics base in La Maxe, near Metz. This 60,000 m² facility can store 100,000 m³ of goods.

METZ. - Starting this morning, the Ikea logistics base at La Maxe will receive its first deliveries, starting with 25 trucks per day. The first train shipments will arrive in mid-May. The platform will also be supplied by the waterway, which will carry containers from Asia via Rotterdam. In total, 350,000 cubic meters of flat-pack furniture will transit through La Maxe each year.

Officially announced in September 1998, the Ikea project is now operational. Its location on the outskirts of Metz illustrates the city's advantages for logistics, a sector that is growing alongside the globalization of the economy. Metz was competing with 13 other sites, notes Philippe Monneret, director of Ikea Distribution Services, who inaugurated his platform yesterday in the presence of numerous guests.

Ikea's arrival contributes to regional development in two ways. It creates jobs and has led to the municipality of La Maxe joining the Metz district, as acknowledged by its mayor, Norbert Lambin. The Swedish group, which invested 350 million francs in the construction of this 325-meter by 174-meter warehouse with a height of 22 meters in its central section, has carried out its project with flying colors.

It took only ten months to construct the building. To meet the deadline, all partners, including the Metz district, the department, the Region, and the public authorities, mobilized their energies. Jean-Marie Rausch, Senator and Mayor of Metz, who welcomed the completion of the project, paid tribute to the entrepreneurial spirit of the Swedish group.

The La Maxe logistics center will serve 24 Ikea stores located in France, Spain, Italy, and Switzerland. In the first year, it will manage 3,500 items from France, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, and the Far East. Depending on the category, some products will remain in stock for only a few days, while others will remain in stock for a few months.

Ikea has entrusted the management of its platform to the Norbert Dentressangle group, a logistics and transport specialist whose mission, as its president, Norbert Dentressangle, emphasizes, is to give its customers a competitive advantage. This group already manages 52 warehouses representing one million square meters of buildings.

The La Maxe platform allows Ikea to optimize its distribution costs, better than the facilities in Saint-Quentin-Fallavier in the Rhone valley or Piacenza in Italy, the group has already decided to increase the storage capacity of its Lorraine facilities by 85,000 m3. This extension, planned for May 2001, represents an additional investment of 200 million francs and should create 80 new jobs.

At the same time, the Swedish group will open a retail store next to its platform on October 4. With a surface area of ​​over 10,000 m2, it will create 180 jobs.

J.-LT

[ Article from the Republican Lorrain, October 5, 2000 ]

The Swedish group Ikea opened its eleventh French store yesterday in La Maxe. With a Scandinavian breakfast at 7 a.m. and a pine log to cut as a ribbon, the Ikea culture surprised and delighted.

METZ. - Thick fog envelops the already dense traffic on the A31. It's not yet dawn when a long line of cars enters the redesigned La Maxe interchange. Ikea, the eleventh store in France, opens its doors. In keeping with an exclusive concept, the Swedish giant inaugurates according to Swedish tradition and pulls off the feat of seating its official guests around a Scandinavian breakfast at 7 a.m.

Christian Bonnard, director of the La Maxe store, welcomes nearly three hundred people who have risen at the crack of dawn to respond to the invitation. All the presidents of the Lorraine and local institutions that have worked to establish Ikea in La Maxe are present: Gérard Longuet, regional council; Philippe Leroy, general council; Jean-Marie Rausch, district; Pierre Hannecart, sub-prefect of Metz-Campagne; and Norbert Lambin, mayor of La Maxe.

Also present were Mathieu Puhl, CEO of Le Républicain Lorrain, whose offices are now adjacent to "the Ikea ship"; Pierre Dapp, President of the Economic and Social Council; Philippe Guillaume, President of the Metz Traders' Federation... and many others. Christian Bonnard, owner of the 162nd store of the international chain, thanked them for their presence.

The director congratulates the Ikea team and its local partners, whose "drive and support" enabled the store to open within an exceptionally short timeframe. Restaurant manager Gilles Chapuis laden the table with Swedish specialties. A surprising and refined fish-based breakfast was served. The speeches whet the appetites of the guests, while the mayor of La Maxe and the presidents agree on the originality of the morning menu. Philippe Leroy promises to use it at the next opportunity.

Economic development

Above all, everyone agrees on the economic impact and attractiveness that such a location is expected to foster. Gérard Longuet emphasizes the "welcoming of foreign and logistics investments, the two primary vocations of the Region," inspired by Ikea's presence in Metz. Jean-Marie Rausch is "happy" to see the arrival of not only "a modern concept" but also leaders: "You immediately targeted this sector."

Jean-Louis Baillot, CEO of Ikea France, confirms this initial desire and "the pugnacity of the Lorrainers" in wanting Ikea on their land. The blue whale has washed up at La Maxe to live there and "make life." Inaugurated last May, the logistics base, with a capacity of 100,000 m3, will expand to handle "500,000 m3 per year and become one of the largest in France." The CEO, proud to "contribute to the region's economic activity," includes all the stakeholders who participated in the implementation.

In just nine months, the store was born, and the concept is decidedly new and seductive. Guests grasped its spirit as they strolled through the 15,000 m² of sales area. At 8:45 a.m., a crowd of curious onlookers pressed past the still-closed doors. Norbert Lambin took off his jacket to cut the ribbon... a fir log. The wood gave way under the saw, thanks to the strength of the arms of the mayor of La Maxe and the store manager. The first customers crossed the threshold to music under a shower of yellow and blue confetti. Ikea innovates and continues to enchant.

BP