Starting this month, Ikea is introducing deliveries by boat via the Seine for its Parisian customers, according to Retail Technology Innovation Hub.
In an effort to reduce CO2 emissions in its operations while improving delivery times in the French capital, the retailer has partnered with Box2Home to launch a scheme that utilises boat transport on the Seine together with electric vehicles for the final delivery.
The Île-de-France region supported the project financially and logistically as part of a wider programme to further utilise navigable waterways in France.
The new solution allows for the entire Ikea range to be delivered by river in the French capital, emitting up to five times less CO2 than road delivery and saving around 300.000 kilometres on Parisian roads annually.
The scheme is planned to be expanded by connecting the Ikea Customer Distribution Centre to the harbour of Limay that opens in 2026.
Ikea France also expects to be able to offer more home delivery slots as a result of introducing the new service.