Started in Sweden in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA has been the world’s largest furniture retailer since 2008. The brand used by the group is an acronym that consists of the founder’s initials, and those of Elmtaryd, the family farm where he was born, and the nearby village Agunnaryd (his hometown in Småland, southern Sweden).
IKEA ( Swedish : [ɪˈkêːa]) is a Swedish -founded, Dutch -headquartered multinational conglomerate that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture, kitchen appliances and home accessories, among other goods and home services.
The next thing we wondered was; where does IKEA furniture come from?
For example, there are many products by IKEA which were made in Italy, especially around 5/10 years ago. And more – a great deal of the furniture products you see imported do not come nowadays from China , but from countries of South East Asia like Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Myanmar.
Where is IKEA furniture made?
According to the subsidiary, over 16,000 employees across 50 sites in 10 countries manufacture the 100 million pieces of furniture that IKEA sells annually. IKEA furniture uses the hardwood alternative particle board. Hultsfred, a factory in southern Sweden , is the company’s sole supplier.
IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad. IKEA operates 355 stores in 29 countries with nearly 70% of the stores located in Europe . The best countries for IKEA are Germany (15% of sales) and the U.
You could be asking “Where are IKEA’s products made?”
While most of the IKEA products are designed in Sweden , much of the actual manufacturing takes place in China and in developing countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia and Myanmar, and also in Eastern European countries such as Romania and Poland. In all, something like 1,350 vendors in 52 countries are responsible.
An IKEA living room. IKEA is the world’s largest furniture retailer , but it doesn’t manufacture the furniture it sells.
How did IKEA grow its business?
As his business grew, Kamprad was able to supplant local advertising and word of mouth with a catalogue of furniture products. While still operating as a mail-order business, in 1953 IKEA opened its first furniture showroom .
IKEA is a Swedish company with suppliers all over the world. According to their website, suppliers are in over fifty countries and that does include China . Of the two thousand suppliers of IKEA products, twenty-two percent are in that country.
Did you know that IKEA is named after a Swedish town?
This heritage is one explanation to the IKEA way of doing things and to our success. 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.
Why does IKEA have so many product names?
Although there are some exceptions, most product names are based on a special naming system developed by IKEA. Company founder Kamprad was dyslexic and found that naming the furniture with proper names and words, rather than a product code, made the names easier to remember .