Ikea fans queuing at the IKEA opening day, in Auckland, New Zealand on December 4, 2025. The New Zealand Herald/Getty Images

The biggest event in New Zealand on Thursday may have been the opening of a furniture store.

Eager shoppers counted down “3… 2…1” and waved Swedish flags as the doors opened to IKEA’s most distant outpost from its motherland.

Thunderous applause rang out as crowds rushed inside the furniture mecca’s newest shop in Auckland, in a long-awaited opening that will finally give Kiwis access to Scandinavian staples like the BILLY bookcase and the MALM bed frame.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon cut the ribbon and hailed the arrival of the affordable furniture giant as a win for New Zealand, which is struggling with a cost-of-living crisis.

Prime Minister Christopher

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