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A Sneak Peek Inside The New Tampa Ikea Store

Tribune photo by RICH MULLINS

Workers get the new Ikea store in Tampa ready for opening day in May.

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By RICHARD MULLINS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 17, 2009

Ikea will open its Ybor City store in May, but today TBO is getting a preview inside the new store.

Keep checking back to see new pictures and observations throughout the afternoon.

The 353,000-square-foot store on Adamo Drive will open at 9 a.m. May 6, according to a company statement.

"We are thrilled at the excellent construction progress made in the summer and fall and believe the remaining construction milestones and interior build-up process will be complete by May - much earlier than originally envisioned," Tampa store manager Monica Varela said in the statement.

"Now our primary goal is hiring and training the 400 local hires who will be joining the Ikea co-worker family before we open."

Ikea began hiring for the store, which will be the Swedish furniture maker's third in Florida, in January.

The company has developed something of a cult following over the years, and past store openings have drawn hundreds of people. Some even camp out to be among the first to shop at a new Ikea. The company plans to allow people to camp out starting 48 hours before the Tampa store's opening, Roth said.

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