PHARR, Texas - Pharr Economic Development Corporation President Victor Perez says IKEA is expecting 3,000 people to show up for their official opening on October 1.
IKEA Rio Grande Valley, a 44,000 square foot facility, is opening at 500 N. Jackson Road, within the Pharr Town Center. Working with LEVCOR, owners of Pharr Town Center, Pharr EDC helped bring IKEA to the Valley.
“We are very excited about this. For years and months, we kept it quiet. We couldn't say anything. Finally, they let the cat out of the hat (and it became officials),” Perez said.
“We have already met with the team. October 1 is the day they're going to have a soft opening. They're expecting, when they officially open, about 3,000 people to show up. But October 1 will be for dignitaries and certain people. But after that, they're going to open it up to the public, which we're excited about.
“They do very well in sales. They do very well in attracting foreign buyers and investors, so we're excited. We can't wait for them to start opening up and maybe hear back a year from now (on the impact they have made).”
Pharr EDC and the City of Pharr got a huge shoutout by Sasha Levine when she spoke about LEVCOR bringing IKEA to the Valley. Levine is executive vice president of the company. She spoke in-depth, both about how Pharr Town Center got developed and how her company landed KIEA, when she spoke at a recent 2025 Governor's Small Business Summit. The event, hosted jointly by the Governor’s Office and Pharr EDC, was held at the Jose "Pepe" Salinas Memorial Recreation Center in Pharr.
“Here's the headline everyone wants to hear: IKEA is coming to Pharr (applause)! The first IKEA location in the entire Rio Grande Valley is coming to Pharr. After nearly two years of hard work, we landed the deal and we’re proud to say they'll be opening this year, in Fall 2025. If you are in the business of big boxes, IKEA is like the ultimate pipe dream of a retail outlet if you are commercial real estate developer, and they're coming to Pharr,” Levine said.
She also said: “Our relationship with the City of Pharr and the Pharr Economic Development Corporation has been second to none. As a developer who's worked in dozens of markets across the country, some helpful and some not so much, I can say without hesitation, Pharr is among the best of the best.”
Perez said he was proud to hear Levine say that.
“We have a great relationship with Sasha and her dad, with the Levine family, Larry Levine, Sasha, Justin and all the family. It just tells you that… as I said the other day at a groundbreaking, with Pharr you get the best of the best. Our service is second to none. We do what we have to do, and we do it to our best,” Perez said.
“You know that family (the Levines) knows what we've done, what they've done in the city of Pharr and they continue to invest. And so our conversation with him that day was that he (Larry Levine) wants to keep investing, but now he wants to do a different type of industry, or another type of business that he wants to get into, because he just loves how the city of Pharr treats him, the good relations he has with the mayor and the city council and our EDC board. But yes, we're very proud of them (LEVCOR). Sasha has been working this project with us for a while.”
Pharr Town Center is home top tier national tenants, including TJ Maxx, Ross, Cinemark, Main Event, Academy, Crunch Fitness, Cost Plus World Market, Texas A&M University, and many, many more. Asked if he could have ever imagined Pharr Town Center develop the way it has, Perez said:
“Well, I was born and raised in Pharr. I know Pharr like the back of my hand, all the streets. I grew up here. But I never imagined anything like this. I remember the old Centro Mall. Larry turned it around completely and look at it now. You would never have expected it. And Larry shared the story with me. It wasn't easy. He did not know if it would work. He took a risk.”
IKEA Rio Grande Valley will be the 12th IKEA store in Texas. Currently, there are five full-sized IKEA stores, three Plan & Order points with Pick-up, and three recently announced smaller-format stores opening soon in San Marcos, Rockwall and Dallas.
"At IKEA, we want to create a better everyday life for the many people and one way we can do that is by bringing IKEA close to where people live, work, socialize and shop. That’s why we're enhancing our store formats for greater convenience, making delivery more affordable, and ensuring better connectivity with our customers in their daily lives,” said Javier Quiñones, CEO and chief sustainability officer for IKEA U.S.
“The opening of IKEA Rio Grande Valley is a great example of our strategy to develop smaller, more accessible store formats, bringing a more connected and accessible IKEA experience to everyone."
Quiñones said IKEA Rio Grande Valley will be a one-level small-format store spanning approximately 44,000 square feet. He said customers can expect to be inspired, learn about home furnishings, and find 1,600 articles for immediate take-away. The entire range will be available to order online, with options for free store pickup or home delivery at a minimal fee. Plus, this store will feature the Swedish Bite concept with hot and cold food options for a quick meal on the go or to take home to enjoy later.
"I'm thrilled to announce the opening of IKEA Rio Grande Valley. This new store brings our signature styles closer to the community in an innovative way—making it more accessible, more convenient, and more affordable than ever before," said Keena Garcia, Market Manager, IKEA U.S.
Garcia said IKEA is dedicated to elevating the customer experience with a variety of customer meeting points and locations that complement each other and meet people's different home furnishing needs. In addition to opening new customer meeting points, IKEA U.S. has made significant investments to enhance its e-commerce experience and service offerings, including new IKEA Family and IKEA for Business benefits, lower-priced shipping and delivery, Click & Collect and TaskRabbit assembly services.
