More than 400 employees, some ASU students, are preparing for the Nov. 10 opening of a 342,000 square-foot IKEA furniture store in Tempe.
The Tempe location of the traditional Swedish furniture megastore will serve the entire Valley, said IKEA spokesman Joseph Roth.
A job fair was held for IKEA employees at the South Mountain Resort, which attracted more than 3,500 people, many of them students.
Architecture freshman Alejandra De La Torre was hired at the job fair to work in sales in the cook shop.
"Out of like 4,000 people, only 400 made it, and I made it," she said.
The job fair began with group interviews in which participants were shown an IKEA item and were observed while they discussed it, De La Torre said.
She said she went through three days of four-hour trainings.
As a part-time employee, De La Torre will be working 12 to 15 hours per week and is eligible for full benefits, including tuition reimbursement and books.
"There were a lot of students," she said.
The Tempe store will be the first desert Southwest store for the 60-year-old company. It will be IKEA's 203rd store in the world and the 22nd store in the United States.
"The Phoenix area is just a natural extension for us, and we're very excited about that," Roth said.
IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943.
Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman plans to participate in a traditional IKEA opening log-sawing ceremony prior to the doors opening at 9 a.m.
"For me, IKEA is 11 years in the waiting," Hallman said.
He said has been an IKEA fan since he first ordered from its catalog in 1993.
IKEA executives said the Tempe store would market to English- and Spanish-speaking customers, the first one to do so. All tags and signs are written in both languages.
This location will be the only store to sell outdoor furniture year-round because of Arizona's desert climate.
IKEA Tempe also features an outdoor park, a 245-seat restaurant and a bistro near the exit.
Reach the reporter at katherine.ruark@asu.edu.
