The document summarizes the history and success of IKEA. It describes how IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad. Kamprad searched for a profitable business and started selling inexpensive furniture that was affordable for everyone. IKEA grew to become the largest furniture retailer in the world, with over 300 stores in 40 countries by 2015. The document attributes IKEA's success to offering well-designed, functional home products at low prices by selling furniture flat-packed and having customers assemble it themselves.
2. The largest IKEA store opened in 1965,
Stockholm, Sweden.
IKEA is a Swedish based group
designing and selling furniture
kitchen appliances and home
accessories, including useful
goods and home services. It is the
largest retailer of furniture in the
world since 2008. It was founded
in Sweden in 1943 by Ingvar
Kamprad. IKEA - the name of the
initials of the founder: I(Ingvar),
K(Kampard), and the initials of
the place where he grew up: E(
Elmtaryd) and A(Agunnaryd). He
searched for a long time a
profitable business and after
several attempts, he started
selling inexpensive furniture that
everyone can afford. The reason
was that in the 20th century
furniture was very expensive and
bought very rarely and was
considered an investment. Thus,
in 1943 at the age of 17, Ingvar
Kamprad founded the IKEA
company, investing in it all the
money earned over the past years
and adding to this capital the
amount donated to him by his
father for good studies
3. How did Ikea become one of the most sought
after companies in the world?
Initially, the business was based on the sale of decor and small
things for the home. (Ikea Foundation, 2016) states that the
company, in order to sell cheaper than its competitors could
offer, concluded contracts with very small manufacturers, who
depended on its purchases and could not dictate prices. Then
this company reduced furniture price, even more, starting to
buy it in a disassembled state and independently assemble it
in its own warehouse. The founder of IKEA did not scare the
problems that inevitably occur on the path of any business.
Now IKEA is a furniture empire with more than 300 stores in
40 countries, it owns 30 furniture and woodworking
enterprises, it has more than 150,000 employees and total
sales in 2015 amounted to almost 32 billion euros.
4. IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad (right)
shakes hands with Hans Ax, IKEA's first
store manager.
The typical IKEA store is
very large, covering an
area of 17,280 meters in
general. According to the
Encyclopaedia Britannica
(Lewis, 2016) IKEA
became an international
retailer when the first
store in Norway opened in
1963. In 1973, when a
store was set up in
Switzerland the company
expanded beyond the
Nordic countries. Stores
opened in many countries,
including Germany(1974),
Australia(1975),
France(1981), the United
States(1985), the United
Kingdom( 1987),
China(1998), and
Russia(2000).
5. Conclusion
So basically the main idea is to offer a wide range of well-
designed, functional home furnishing products that
everyone can afford to purchase. Most of the furniture of
IKEA is flat, ready for assembly by the consumer. Besides
furniture IKEA stores include restaurants and cafes
serving typical Swedish food. They also have small food
shops that sell Swedish foodstuffs worldwide. IKEA is
now widely known for its smart, cost-effective and highly
customizable furniture, but the company has also
diversified its products and services from flat-packed
houses to food stores. The vision of the company is ‘ to
create a better daily life for the many people’. IKEA
believes that home is the most important place in the
world and children its most important people.
6. References
Dezeen, n.d. Dezeen. [Online]
Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2019/04/25/ikea-logo-redesign-
seventy-agency/
[Accessed 20 April 2019].
Ikea Foundation, 2016. Ikea Foundation. [Online]
Available at: https://www.ikeafoundation.org/about-us-ikea-
foundation/history/
[Accessed 8 May 2019].
Lewis, R., 2016. Britannica. [Online]
Available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/IKEA
[Accessed 8 May 2019].
