Home furnishing company, IKEA UK and Ireland, today announced the appointment of Javier Quiñones as Country Retail Manager to lead the UK and Ireland business.

Mr Quiñones will take over from Gillian Drakeford on 1st June 2018, building on her achievements in sales growth and expansion across the UK and Ireland. After joining IKEA Badalona in Barcelona as a part time co-worker in the self serve department in 1997, Javier progressed within IKEA Spain, in roles such as Sales Manager and Store Manager, before joining IKEA UK and Ireland in 2014 as Deputy Retail Manager.

In his current position as Deputy Retail Manager, Mr Quiñones has played an important role in driving the success of the UK and Ireland business with responsibility for sales, property, marketing, expansion, logistics, interior design and a number of stores.

Commenting on his new position, Mr Quiñones said: "Having already spent 20 fantastic years at IKEA, I’m excited to take my next step as Country Retail Manager for IKEA UK and Ireland. I’m passionate about understanding how our customers live and want to use my role to improve life at home for people across the UK and Ireland.

There’s a huge amount of innovation and transformation in the retail industry, from experimenting with in-store experience to merging digital and physical retail. I’m looking forward to ensuring IKEA leads the way, and continuing the journey we’ve been on to date, building on Gillian’s legacy.”

Following her move from IKEA UK and Ireland, Gillian will join Inter IKEA Systems, the owner of the IKEA Concept and worldwide franchisor, as IKEA Retail System Manager, where she will lead the development of the retail system. 

Mr Quiñones takes over at a time that has seen a significant period of growth and expansion in the UK and Ireland. IKEA UK and Ireland achieved its sixth consecutive year of growth last year, and opened new stores in Reading, Sheffield and its latest store which opened in Exeter last week.

Mr Quiñones added: “People are at the heart of our business and I’m looking forward to spending my first couple of months meeting and learning from our co-workers across the UK and Ireland.”

Alongside strengthening IKEA’s position as a leading retail brand in the UK and Ireland, Gillian has played a key role in committing to paying the real Living Wage in 2016 and becoming the first major retailer to guarantee one weekend off in four for customer-facing co-workers.

Gillian Drakeford commented: "Leading the UK and Ireland has been a great privilege and together we have had five exceptional years of growth becoming more accessible to people through the opening of three new stores and the development of new store formats, as well as strengthening our online offer. Javier’s role has been integral to these achievements and his life at home expertise and passion for the brand make him well-equipped to take on the role of Country Retail Manager.

“I am so proud of what we have accomplished to date in the UK and Ireland and I feel honoured to have the opportunity to join Inter IKEA Systems. I’m looking forward to taking my next step in the business and having a positive impact on the future development of IKEA."