宜家是如何征服世界的

 　　It took some time to figure out just the right shopping complex, off just the right highway interchange and just the right distance from Seoul, that could accommodate a 624,000-square-foot store—that is to say, one more than three times the size of the average Wal-Mart Supercenter. It took more time to solve certain mysteries, like how big to make the store’s children’s section in a country where kids are often given ample space in the family living quarters. It took more time to figure out how to showcase kitchens that incorporate kimchi refrigerators, a uniquely Korean appliance—and even more time to untangle nuances of the market, like the South Korean’s preference for metal chopsticks.

　　要规划出一个恰到好处的购物中心，正好位于某个合适的高速公路出口旁，与首尔的车程还不远不近，面积高达62万4千英尺（比一个标准沃尔玛超市的面积大三倍多），是需要花点时间的。而要解决某些特定难题，比如，在韩国这样一个孩子在家中享有充足活动空间的国家，购物中心的儿童区该做多大才合理，需要花更多功夫。至于如何布置一个能容纳韩式泡菜冰箱这种韩国特有家电的厨房，就要花上更多时间——而要弄清这个市场的微妙之处，比如韩国人对金属筷子的偏爱，则又要搭上更多时间。

　　宜家

　　In all, it took about six years for Ikea to unveil its inaugural¹ store in South Korea, in Gwangmyeong, starting from the first scouting² trip. Ikea celebrated³ the opening in December with a tree planting rather than ribbon cutting. (Chalk that up to Ikea tradition rather than to South Korean custom.)

　　总而言之，从宜家公司首次考察韩国市场，到在光明市开设第一家韩国分店，花了约整整六年时间。去年12月，宜家用植树而非剪彩来庆祝这家店开业（沿用了宜家传统，而不是韩国习俗）。

　　The lag was quintessentially Ikean. “They are ferocious⁴ about not expanding too rapidly,” says David Marcotte of consulting firm Kantar Retail⁵. But six years? “The more global, the more complex it gets,” replies Mikael Palmquist, the regional manager of retail for Asia Pacific. “We need to get these things right or we will never be taken seriously.”

　　这种缓慢是典型的宜家风格。零售咨询公司Kantar Retail的戴维o马科特说：“扩张太快会让他们抓狂的。”但至于要花六年吗？宜家亚太区区域零售经理米卡埃尔o帕姆奎斯特表示：“公司越是全球化，业务扩张就越复杂。我们必须行事谨慎，否则客户就永远不会重视我们。”

　　Even with all that careful planning, Ikea managed to get a few things wrong. It misjudged the number of parking spaces needed, and a seemingly benign⁶ map for sale upset some customers: The body of water east of Korea was labeled the Sea of Japan rather than the East Sea, as South Koreans prefer.

　　即便规划如此周详，宜家还是办错了好几桩事。它错估了实际所需的停车位数量，还有一张看似友好的地图却让不少客户很不舒服：朝鲜东部的海被标注为日本海，而不是韩国人所习称的东海。

　　But the Koreans seem, for the most part, to have forgiven the Swedes. Today the Gwangmyeong store, which is the company’s largest in the world by shopping area, is on track to become one of Ikea’s top-performing outlets⁸ for 2015.

　　但韩国人看起来大体上已经原谅了这家瑞典巨头。光明市分店是宜家在全球购物区域面积最大的一家店，现在人气很旺，有望成为宜家2015年业绩最佳的分店。

　　The success is hardly a fluke. Ikea, it seems, is a genius at selling Ikea—flat packing, transporting, and reassembling its quirky Swedish styling all across the planet. The furniture and furnishings brand is in more countries than Wal-Mart, Carrefour, and Toys “R” Us. China, where Ikea has eight of its 10 biggest stores, is the company’s fastest-growing market. An outlet⁷ in Morocco is coming soon, and there are hints that Brazil may not be far off. Meanwhile, Ikea is going meatballs out in India, where it plans to invest about $2 billion over a decade to open 10 stores.

　　这份成功来得绝非侥幸。宜家似乎是一个营销天才——扁平式包装，方便拼装，那些带有瑞典风情的家具正在销往全世界。和沃尔玛、家乐福及玩具反斗城相比，这个瑞典家具品牌已打入了更多国家的市场。宜家十大分店中有8家在中国，中国也是该公司增长最快的市场。摩洛哥分店即将开张，还有传闻说巴西分店也开张在即。同时，宜家打算将其瑞典肉丸卖到印度更多地方，在未来十年投资20亿美元，在印度开设十家分店。

　　Getting it right in emerging markets like China and India, where Ikea is well-positioned to capitalize on a growing middle class, is a key factor in its goal of hitting EUR50 billion in sales by 2020. That’s up from EUR28.7 billion in its fiscal⁹ 2014 ($39 billion based on the average exchange rate for Ikea’s fiscal year) and almost double its 2005 sales level. Today the Ikea Group has 318 stores, not including the brand’s some four dozen franchised¹⁰ locations; it’s aiming for around 500 by 2020.

　　抓稳新兴市场，是宜家实现2020年销售突破500亿欧元目标的关键因素。在中国和印度，宜家已做好市场定位，瞅准当地迅速崛起的中产阶级。这是个雄心勃勃的目标：2014财年，宜家的销售额为287亿欧元，几乎比2005年的销售额翻了一番。目前宜家集团拥有318家分店，这还不包括48家特许加盟店；到2020年，宜家的另一个目标是：开店数量达到500家。

1 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

2 scouting   

守候活动，童子军的活动

参考例句：

• I have people scouting the hills already. 我已经让人搜过那些山了。
• Perhaps also from the Gospel it passed into the tradition of scouting. 也许又从《福音书》传入守望的传统。 来自演讲部分

3 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

4 ferocious   

adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的

参考例句：

• The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
• The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。

5 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

6 benign   

adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的

参考例句：

• The benign weather brought North America a bumper crop.温和的气候给北美带来大丰收。
• Martha is a benign old lady.玛莎是个仁慈的老妇人。

7 outlet   

n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄

参考例句：

• The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
• Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。

8 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

10 franchised   

v.给…以特许权，出售特许权( franchise的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He is starting the first school himself,but subsequent ones will be franchised to use the Fujita method. 他已经自己开办了第一所学校，但是以后的学校将被特许使用富士达方法。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Driving tests for franchised bus are held on request by bus companies. 专营巴士的驾驶考试只在巴士公司要求下才举行。 来自互联网