The ECC compared the prices of 20 items from the Swedish retail giant’s latest catalogues in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Germany and Britain. Belgium emerged as the most expensive, with France the cheapest. In one case, the difference was enormous: the basic Factum/Ädel kitchen costs €535 in France, whereas in Belgium you will pay €1,099 – more than double the price.
Belgium overall was 22% more expensive than France, far ahead of the Netherlands (14% dearer), Germany (2%) and the UK (1%). But it’s not all bad news for the Belgian consumer: a Verksam office chair costs 12% less here than in France, and the Antilop children’s chair is 20% cheaper.
Ikea admitted it adjusts its prices to local markets but pointed out that consumers are free to shop across borders. Prices depend on a number of factors, such as local fashions, the popularity of some products and the existence of strong local competitors, which can push prices down.
“We have always been very transparent about our prices,” said spokesman Gerard Bos. And indeed, the ECC admitted it had chosen Ikea for its exercise in comparison simply because the company provides so much information on prices.
The company also criticised the sample size of the survey. “We have more than 6,000 items in our catalogue. Twenty products is only a fraction of that,” Bos said.
Flanders Today is a 
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