Photo: IKEA
In his obituary of Ingvar Kamprad, James Hagerty at The Wall Street Journal wrote that both IKEA’s founder and Sam Walton “slashed prices and rallied their employees with folksy wisdom. But Mr. Kamprad’s IKEA has proved more of a global success story than Mr. Walton’s Walmart Inc.”
Many columns underscored how IKEA changed furniture design to embrace “lagom” — the Swedish spirit of minimalism and balance. The philosophy was highlighted in a “Chuck Out The Chintz” campaign that ran in the United Kingdom in the mid-nineties. The simplified design was part of an underlying goal of making affordable furniture for everyday people.
Wrote Michele Koh Morollo for Dwell, “By offering simplicity and value — and improving the design, manufacturing, and distribution of furniture and homes accessories — Kamprad made it easier and more convenient for everyone to live well in affordably and smartly furnished homes.”
Among the steps IKEA took to lower costs was locating stores in remote areas outside cities, buying materials at a discount, minimizing staff and promoting self-service at the store level while emphasizing non-lacquered, flat-pack and home-assembled furniture.
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Photo: IKEA[/caption]
Warren Shoulberg, a consultant to the home furnishings industry, told The Washington Post, “IKEA showed up and said, you can buy something and use it for a couple of years — or you can keep it longer — but this isn’t necessarily something you’re going to pass down to your kids or your grandkids. That was a remarkable transition.”
Less mentioned in the OBITs has been IKEA’s in-store experience characterized by blue Frakta shopping bags, the accessible trolleys and Swedish meatballs, and in especially its maze-like shopping routes.
“You often can’t see what is coming next and fear you’ll miss something you need if you don’t continue all the way along the path,” wrote Catherine Jansson-Boydfor for Australia’s Marketing Magazine. “There are potential escape points throughout the store, but that would mean that you will miss several of the sections, and rarely consumers are prepared to take that risk.”
Photo: IKEA[/caption]
Warren Shoulberg, a consultant to the home furnishings industry, told The Washington Post, “IKEA showed up and said, you can buy something and use it for a couple of years — or you can keep it longer — but this isn’t necessarily something you’re going to pass down to your kids or your grandkids. That was a remarkable transition.”
Less mentioned in the OBITs has been IKEA’s in-store experience characterized by blue Frakta shopping bags, the accessible trolleys and Swedish meatballs, and in especially its maze-like shopping routes.
“You often can’t see what is coming next and fear you’ll miss something you need if you don’t continue all the way along the path,” wrote Catherine Jansson-Boydfor for Australia’s Marketing Magazine. “There are potential escape points throughout the store, but that would mean that you will miss several of the sections, and rarely consumers are prepared to take that risk.”
- Ingvar Kamprad Built Global IKEA Chain From a Single Furniture Store in Sweden – The Wall Street Journal
- Ingvar Kamprad, Founder of IKEA and Creator of a Global Empire, Dies at 91 – The New York Times
- How IKEA Founder Ingvar Kamprad Built an Empire Out of Swedish Resourcefulness – Dwell
- The IKEA effect: how Ingvar Kamprad’s company changed the way we shop – The Washington Post
- The IKEA effect: how Ingvar Kamprad’s company changed the way we shop – Marketing Magazine