The Swedes are Comin' to Town

While some Bostonians get excited about Star Wars, there are others of us who would rather spend our hard-earned cash on something really important, like something from a big Swedish retailer. A few months ago, Bostonist was psyched that the Swedish retail powerhouse, IKEA, was opening in Stoughton this fall. Well, Wednesday, November 9 marks the opening day of our very own Massachusetts' IKEA. In order to draw a crowd, the store is promising $5,000 to the first person in line at 9:00a.m. opening day. Bostonist has only seen the truly devoted wait in line for days for Sox playoff tickets, but perhaps there is some cash-strapped person who will fight for the first place finish.

In other Swedish retailing news (we don't get to say this enough), the Globe reports that H&M will be opening a second store in Boston, and will become one of the biggest retail stores on Newbury Street next year. The store just signed a 10-year lease for a spot in the Newbry building that falls on the Boylston/Newbury/Clarendon block of Back Bay. (This is the same building that once housed Express, Bath and Body Works, and a Structure.) Bostonist works right across the street from this building, which has been under renovations for months now. Word in the office was that it was being transformed into a Boston Sports Club, but according to today's news, it looks like H&M, sans Kate Moss in their large window displays, will be occupying the space.