Swedish furniture giant IKEA will recall their unstable Malm furniture line of chests and drawers in China.
The decision came after many vocal Chinese consumers complained that IKEA was discriminating them. The Malm line was still in Chinese stores amidst recalling over 29 million pieces of chests and drawers in Canada and the United States.
The product recall in North America transpired two weeks ago, after being linked to the death of six children.
When IKEA refused to recall their product from their Chinese outlets, consumers complained online and through government controlled media. Government controlled newspaper Xinhua accused IKEA of committing “blatant bullying.”
The government-run General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine claimed that after meeting IKEA, the company decided to change their minds.
Last Tuesday, the furniture company decided to recall about 1.7 million pieces from their stores. IKEA offered free home installation and an optional refund.
IKEA’s spokeswoman, Xian Jiaxin, said, “IKEA is a very responsible company. Consumer protection is very important to us, which is how we came to this decision.”
Many Chinese shoppers go to IKEA for their furniture needs. As a result, the Swedish company incurred a large amount of sales. By September 2015, total revenue totaled to $1.55 billion.
The furniture company is determined to firm its hold in the vast Chinese retail market. Total retail sales annually is worth $4.5 trillion in China, which will soon exceed sales from the United States.
Jeff Walters, managing director of the Boston Consulting Group said, “If you look across the world and you look where there is still significant growth in consumer spending, the answer is very much China. Of course any company is going to make sure it’s standing on the right side of regulation to have access to a market that size.”
Many Chinese consumers are becoming more discriminating due to violation of rights in the past. Since then, government inspectors have been more stringent in regulation and inspection of goods and products.