Ikea to Lay Off 70 From Torrance Stor

Home furnishings giant Ikea, which has taken over former rival Stor’s operations, is temporarily laying off about 70 employees from the Stor outlet at the Del Amo Fashion Center, Ikea officials announced this week.

The Torrance outlet is scheduled to close April 30, when the layoffs, primarily of part-time workers, are scheduled to take effect, Ikea officials said.

Chuck Gruden, Ikea’s human resources manager, said the company would attempt to hire a majority of the former Stor workers at a new 200,000-square-foot warehouse store in Carson when it opens in November.

“Realistically, it’s in Ikea’s best interests to hire these people--they’re experienced, we know their performance,” Gruden said.

Of the 123 Torrance employees, about 40 full-time workers will be offered positions with Ikea next week in the City of Industry and in Tustin, Gruden said. In addition, 10 management employees have already been absorbed into Ikea operations elsewhere, Gruden said.