Ikea's second store in Beijing opens in November, 2013 to lure customers from the southern part of the city.[Photo/China Daily]

Lu Zhenwang, an internet expert and chief executive of Wanqing Consultancy in Shanghai, said: "The physical stores of Ikea are very big and require large areas. The stores in first- and second-tier cities are nearly saturated.

"There aren't any Ikea physical stores in third- and fourth-tier cities though the demand is emerging, so it's essential for Ikea to launch e-commerce services and to serve those places easily in the future. It would be convenient to set up some pickup and order points in smaller cities."

In May, the furniture retailer established a pickup and order point in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province. The stores in Ningbo, a nearby city, will provide goods for that service.