Swedish furniture maker Ikea has banned 15 models of drawers from sale in Korea as of Sept. 20, in a voluntary measure amid lingering concerns over safety.

Andre Schmidtgall, CEO for Ikea Korea, said in a press conference that the company suspended sales of 15 products that do not comply with a preliminary safety standard set up by the Korean government. Ikea stopped selling 15 models, also due to major defects found in its Malm chest that led to the death of six children.

Countering mounting criticism over Ikea Korea’s sluggish response in dealing with defective products, the CEO said, “It is important to anchor the dressers to the wall.”

“We follow all local market regulations. The dressers have been recalled in the US, Canada and Korea, among the countries we operate in,” he added.

As part of its business expansion strategy, Ikea Korea plans to open a second store in Goyang of Gyeonggi Province in the second half of next year, the CEO said. The company is in the process of reviewing other sites, including Seoul and Busan, to expand its presence in the country, he added.

When asked about Ikea Korea’s sales outlook for next year, the CEO told The Korea Herald, “We believe that when we do things the right way, sales will follow. Currently we are focused on training and developing our second store.”

Ikea Korea reaped 345 billion won ($312.5 million) in sales, recording a 17 percent increase in turnover on-year between January and August this year, thanks to the strong sales of its family and children related products, according to Ikea Korea’s business highlights for 2016. It manages a total of 992 employees, and 900,000 memberships in the country as of Aug. 31.

Ikea Korea also previously announced that it would invest more than 1 trillion won by 2020 to take the lead in Korea’s home furnishing market.

The market for Korea’s home furnished goods is expected to be worth some 18 trillion by 2023, according to the Bank of Korea. Such an outlook is in line with the rapidly rising portion of single households that has surpassed 27 percent market of the total population and is projected to stand at 34.3 percent by 2035, data from Statistics Korea showed.

The global low-cost home furnishing brand currently operates one store in Korea, the largest by size among all its global stores, in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, located an hour’s drive from central Seoul.

“We will continue to strive to achieve our long-term commitment to operate six stores and employ 4000 workers by 2020,” Schmidtgall said.

The plans were unveiled during a press conference held to promote Ikea’s new campaign for its kitchen lineups and tableware.

Titled “Goodbye expectations. Hello you!,” its 2017 campaign aims to bring the fun shared with family and friends back to the kitchen, he said.

“Sharing meals doesn’t have to perfect. It’s okay to overcook a little, and to spill on the floor. We hope people can focus on the time spent in the kitchen.”

The campaign was launched to revive quality time spent around the table, over home-cooked meals. Ikea Korea hopes the campaign will boost its sales for 2017. It has introduced all of its 700 products, with the long awaited dishes and kitchen appliances going on sale earlier this month.

By Kim Bo-gyung (lisakim425@heraldcorp.com)