Wincanton to operate IKEA UK’s new multi-million-pound distribution centre

IKEA UK has opened a new 452,000 sq ft distribution centre in Dartford, Kent, operated by Wincanton. The new facility will enable faster, more sustainable home deliveries across London and the southeast of England. The launch marks IKEA's latest milestone in its ongoing London expansion, as it seeks to enhance accessibility and convenience for UK customers. 

Located at the former Littlebrook Power Station site near the Dartford Crossing and M25, the new distribution centre is conveniently placed on the border of London to deliver almost one million orders annually – with many reaching customers within 24 hours of an order being placed. Today, almost every second IKEA purchase in London takes place online. The launch of the new distribution centre will also result in a significant reduction in CO2 emissions, being closer to customers.  

By 2025, 100% of IKEA customer orders in London will also be delivered by electric vehicles. To enable this, IKEA will install 28 rapid HGV chargers at the distribution centre, to power up HGVs while loading and unloading IKEA goods in under an hour. Additionally, 60 overnight chargers are set to be installed.  

Investment in the new distribution centre is the latest milestone in IKEA’s ongoing London expansion, through new city stores, the development of existing stores and new fulfilment and delivery capabilities – supporting ambitious plans to make shopping at IKEA in London more convenient and sustainable than ever before.  

Jakob Bertilsson, County Customer Fulfilment Manager, IKEA UK, said:

“In London, we are opening new IKEA stores, investing in our fulfilment network, and offering new services, to meet more people where they live, work and socialise. Establishing a distribution centre in the region is a hugely exciting and significant step in our investment in London, as well as a continuation in our omnichannel strategy to support customers in however they choose to shop with us.  

“We want people to enjoy the IKEA experience, no matter where they choose to engage with us, whether visiting our stores, home planning, or online. The distribution centre will enable this, by increasing availability of our products and reducing lead times. It also builds on our ambitions for 100% zero emission ‘last mile’ deliveries for 2025, a critical component of our sustainability strategy.”  

With a storage capacity of 35,000 m3 – equal to over 77,000 flatpack BILLY bookcases – the enormous distribution centre is capable of housing up to 9,000 different products, spanning across almost every product in the IKEA range. The launch of the facility has created over 300 jobs and is operated by British logistics firm and longstanding IKEA service provider, Wincanton. 

James Wroath, CEO at Wincanton, added:

“Wincanton is excited to play such a key role in the transformation and expansion of IKEA, who will benefit from our unrivalled expertise and proven operational excellence in eFulfilment. We are looking forward to further strengthening our partnership to achieve our shared goals of meeting IKEA’s customers’ needs quicker than ever before.”