IKEA Copenhagen: Swedish Warehouse with a Copenhagen Accent

There’s no mistaking. Four familiar yellow block letters on a blue background. Yet, this furniture store stands out significantly from its branches in the rest of the country. It’s more compact and has a stronger Copenhagen feel. IKEA Copenhagen near Dybbølsbro has green elements and a significant focus on the capital’s city life.

A three-story white building with rounded corners and a wavy powder-coated curtain facade, where green plants peek out. In several spots, the curtain is drawn back, and large window sections offer both interior and exterior views. The Swedish furniture giant has been squeezed into a much smaller space than usual – situated between a railway and heavy traffic, Dorte Mandrup Architects designed Copenhagen’s first IKEA.

Big focus on two wheels

IKEA Copenhagen particularly accommodates the habits and rhythms of Copenhagen’s residents. Bicycles, the preferred mode of transportation among the capital’s citizens, are incorporated into the plans for the store as well as its interior design.

In front of the building, a large parking area for bicycles has been designed, consisting of bike racks with a median strip planted with grass and trees. Here, there’s room for 500 of the customers’ bikes. And if your own luggage rack can’t carry the filled bags, the store has provided 11 electric cargo bikes for customers to use.

Green on top

On the top of the new store, you’ll find a green urban oasis resting on large white pillars, where hundreds of trees and shrubs grow. Here, you can enjoy the great view of Copenhagen and relax in the green surroundings – maybe with some treats from the café in the warehouse below. The roof park is also accessible outside the store’s opening hours, with an elegant spiral staircase leading visitors up to a new green urban space.

The building’s lush rooftop area extends in line with the area’s elevated green walkways, where citizens can freely move above the busy traffic. On top of the roof, there are nearly 1500 square meters of solar panels, expected to cover a quarter of the building’s energy consumption.

So yes, the building appears quite green, but it also contains a paradox, as described by Politiken’s architectural editor, Karsten Ifversen, in his review:

“Beneath the light metal facade lies a building with heavy concrete slabs and pillars, and a business that facilitates making it even easier for city dwellers to increase their consumption of lifestyle products. There’s a dilemma embedded in IKEA Copenhagen’s growth philosophy, which mirrors the dilemma of our efficient era.”

Near IKEA Copenhagen

Extending from IKEA Copenhagen’s rooftop terrace is the green pathway. High above the car exhaust, you can tilt your head way back and view BIG’s controversial Kaktus Towers. Turn around and walk all the way up to Bymilen – The City Dune by SEB Bank – passing the KB32 office building, which underwent a total transformation and was voted ‘City’s Best Architecture’ by Berlingske’s readers in 2022.