The story of IKEA – IKEA Global (2024)

FAQs

The story of IKEA – IKEA Global? ›

Humble beginnings

IKEA expands and restructures

1950 – 1959: IKEA expanded operations in Sweden. 1960 – 1969: Stores opened in Denmark and Norway. 1970s: The expansion continued in countries outside of Scandinavia including Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Kuwait, Netherlands, Singapore and Switzerland.

Armchairs, sofas, tables and chairs are named after Swedish towns and cities. Book shelves are named after professions or boy names. Lamps and lighting are named after days, months and Swedish towns and cities. Children's products are named after animals, insects or just describing words.

Ingvar Kamprad founded IKEA in 1943 at the age of 17, selling goods like pens and wallets. Småland, his home county in Sweden, was heavily forested with stony soil. Hardship bred a tough, resourceful people who were expert at making the most of a little, qualities that have always been at the heart of IKEA.

IKEA, home furnishings retailer that was the world's largest seller of furniture in the early 21st century, operating more than 300 stores around the world. IKEA specializes in low-priced goods, sold whenever possible in compact “flat-pack” form for in-home assembly by the customer.

IKEA's remarkable success in expanding its global footprint can be attributed to its unwavering commitment to localization, a process of adapting products, services, and marketing strategies to suit the specific needs and preferences of a target market.

In 1963, a full decade after the first showroom opened and 20 years after the company was founded, IKEA opened its first store abroad, in Norway. Another 10 years passed before IKEA established its first presence outside Scandinavia, in Spreitenbach, Switzerland, with Germany soon to follow.

The IKEA brand is owned and managed by Inter IKEA Systems B.V., based in the Netherlands, owned by Inter IKEA Holding B.V.

IKEA is the name of a popular Scandinavian-founded, worldwide furniture store. The acronym that makes up the name stands for Ingvar Kamprad (the founder's name), Elmtaryd (the farm where the founder grew up), and Agunnaryd (the founder's hometown).

IKEA's naming system all goes back to its Swedish founder Ingvar Kamprad (cool name btw). According to Business Insider Kamprad has dyslexia so he needed a better way to simplify the item codes. His solution? Name IKEA products after specific and categorised Swedish words.

What did IKEA stand for? ›

Did you know? IKEA is named after the initials of founder Ingvar Kamprad, Elmtaryd, the farm on which he grew up, and Agunnaryd, the nearby village.

I stands for Ingvar, the first name of the IKEA founder. K is for Kamprad, his last name. E is for Elmtaryd, the name of the farm where Ingvar grew up, and A is for Agunnaryd, the name of the parish in Småland, Ingvar's home village. Elmtaryd farm is where Ingvar Kamprad grew up and started the IKEA business.

Ingvar Kamprad founded IKEA in 1943 at the age of 17, selling household goods like pens, wallets and picture frames. Småland, the landscape where Ingvar grew up, was stony and rugged. Back then, many of the inhabitants had to get by with small means, making as much as possible with next to nothing.

“To create a better everyday life for the many people.” This vision goes beyond home furnishing. We want to have a positive impact on the world – from the communities where we source our raw materials to the way our products help our customers live a more sustainable life at home.

Caring for people and planet.

We strive to create products and solutions that meet all five dimensions of design, form, function, low price, sustainability and quality. We call this Democratic Design. Why? because everyone has the right to a better, and brighter, everyday life.

IKEA began sourcing from developing countries since the 70s. It was part of the globalization strategy, which involves producing products at a lower cost while looking for quality and efficient resource utilization. Today, IKEA works with 1500 suppliers in 55 countries, offering a total of about 12,000 products.

Ikea realized it's about the revitalizing aspect(psychological, and neurological) of customer experience(magazines, store shopping experience, and food court) and to some minor level, the revitalization one receives(psychological) from product user experience, and product design. Other companies sold products.

Although Kamprad always envisioned IKEA as a company that sold high-quality, low-priced products with mass appeal, it was the sum of Kamprad's clever solutions over time, such as shipping disassembled furniture to save on packing space, that shaped IKEA into what it is today.

IKEA's marketing strategy is characterized by a global approach, so the IKEA stores look, supply and operate essentially the same everywhere in the world. The marketing and pricing strategy of the company is aimed at the middle class.