ALMHULT, SWEDEN—Ikea Canada is expanding on a new scale.

The world's largest furniture maker will open its smallest retail location in Canada in London, Ont., later this year, it was announced Wednesday morning.

The 20,000-square-foot pick-up centre will feature a limited number of items for purchase and immediate takeaway and 10 tablets on site for customers to browse and buy on www.IKEA.com. It will offer services including merchandise pick-up, home delivery, assembly, planning, returns and exchanges and online sales support, according to a company release.

A regular Ikea location is about 260,000 to 340,000 square feet.

The location, at 3198 Wonderland Rd. S., is expected to open in late 2015. It will employ about 20 people.

More on thestar.com:

IKEA unveils ‘wireless’ furniture

"Canada is the second biggest country in the world and we have only 12 stores," said Stefan Sjostrand, president and chief executive officer of Ikea Canada, in an interview with the Star.

"We haven't expanded so much lately. We could see that this was a good opportunity for this marketplace. We have a conservative approach to expansion. It's important to us to make sure we don't expand too quickly."

Canada is one of the countries being used as a test market for the new retail concept, said Sjostrand. It has proven popular in Norway and in Spain, where 3,000 people lined up for opening day, he said.

It can cost as much as $450 to deliver a kitchen from the Ikea store in Burlington to a home in the London market, said Sjostrand.

With the new London pick-up point, area customers will be able to pick it up themselves or pay $80 for delivery within London.

The location will feature the iconic Ikea blue and yellow exterior.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

"If we see that it is a good thing, we will roll it out (to other locations). If it's not working, then we will have to try something else," said Sjostrand.

The store will feature five bathroom displays; four kitchen displays; three bed displays; four PAX wardrobe displays; 75 home furnishings displays; eight planning desks, and material and finish samples.