Ingvar Kamprad and IKEA - the story of the creator and the company. IKEA stores in Russia Ikea where the company comes from

“How much would you pay for this?”
I. Kamprad

Brand IKEA is famous throughout the world for its low prices and legendary cost-effectiveness system, which is constantly being improved. Its corporate culture and market positioning are praised by many seasoned marketers and branding specialists. Everything that is called IKEA today is directly related to the life, aspirations and personal qualities of one person. This is Ingvar Kamprad.

Biography of Ingvar Kamprad.

He was born in a Swedish town called Elmhult and grew up in a now world-famous place called Småland. Residents of this particular part of Sweden are known as thrifty, hardworking and at the same time creative people. This is also related to living conditions, and with the history of the area.
There were businessmen in the Kamprad family before Ingvar, and even one tragic story associated with unsuccessful entrepreneurship. Ingvar's grandfather committed suicide due to the fact that he could not pay off the huge loans taken out for business needs.

Little Ingvar showed great interest in trade

from a very early age: from about the age of five he began selling matches, and at an older age he took up trading in a variety of areas. Thus, the future founder of a world-famous company sold seeds, fish, lingonberries, so popular and beloved in Sweden, and Christmas cards. To be fair, it should be said that this, in fact, is the entire education of Ingvar Kamprad. He never studied business and marketing, did not read specialized literature and did not attend special classes on this topic; Ingvar has no higher education. Everything he knows is based solely on his wealth of experience, his own mistakes and a very, very attentive attitude towards the world and people.

Founding of IKEA.

In a difficult time for the whole world, in 1943, Ingvar founded his company, remarkable in all respects - IKEA. The company sold fountain pens. Wait, laugh, for the mid-twentieth century this was a truly innovative product. So, at that time in Russia they still wrote with pens, and the “automatic pen” was a foreign curiosity, not accessible to everyone. Ingvar supplied pens from France, and organized his company only because the supplier stated such a need to continue full-fledged cooperation. Ingvar was only 17 years old, and he could not register a company due to his young age and lack of funds.

If we are talking about furniture, we can easily mention the one that is used only by billionaires and kings and queens.

The young Swede, as expected, was helped by his father.

And in the future, Ingvar’s theme of family, the theme of the Motherland will always permeate such a field, seemingly far from all kinds of sentimentality, as trade.

Self the name IKEA is an abbreviation of the first letters. Let's see what the young Swede included in the name of his brainchild? The first pair of letters is Kamprad’s first and last name, the third letter denotes the company of his grandfather and father, and the last is the church parish where Ingvar prayed and confessed.
Sales of fountain pens grew, and after a couple of years Kamprad was able to advertise in local publications, which was very important for the further development of the business.

How did the IKEA business idea we see now come about?

In the late forties, Ingvar's attention was attracted by the fact that in Sweden furniture was unusually expensive and therefore inaccessible to many segments of the population. And the enterprising Kamprad felt the beating of the golden key. He decided to correct the situation in the market of a small but proud country and turned IKEA into a furniture store. Initially, IKEA bought the cheapest chairs and tables. However, Ingvard gave his name to each item, which was common in those days. innovative solution. This simple marketing ploy allowed the company to differentiate itself from competitors in a short time. Moreover, the most best advertising- word of mouth, and the news about the store of fabulously cheap furniture quickly spread throughout the city.

The high sales volume very quickly allowed Ingvar to purchase his own furniture factory.

Already in 1951, the Swedish plant IKEA began producing sensationally cheap furniture. In a country where furniture products were almost a luxury item, such a strategic move was like the effect of a bomb exploding. It became almost impossible to compete fairly with the enlarged IKEA company, and the furniture dealers' association began to put pressure on local suppliers who worked with IKEA. Using power, persuasion and bribery, they managed to force them to boycott such an impudent and successful company. In the course of the story, I will note that today the IKEA company does not give bribes as a matter of principle and declares this publicly.

IKEA may be one of the largest in the world, but still not

So, such a strict boycott for ordinary person would have been a severe blow from which he might not have been able to recover. But Kamprad was not like that. For him, in spite of all the machinations of his enemies, this was only a reason to search for new opportunities and further development. Now Ingvar purchases the lion's share of furniture parts in Poland. This further reduces costs, despite the fact that transportation is also required.

Refusal of delivery and simplification of furniture assembly is a new breakthrough for the company.

IKEA's next move, aimed at reducing costs and lowering the final price of the product, was to refuse to deliver furniture. Now this was done exclusively by the buyers themselves. At the same time, the assembly of IKEA furniture is amazingly simple; Igvar paid a lot of attention to this particular design feature when designing furniture. Even a completely ignorant person can easily assemble an IKEA chair or table, armed only with simple tools like a screwdriver, detailed instructions and a burning desire to save money.

Cover of the IKEA catalog for 2011.

All these events led to the fact that 4 years after the opening of Kamprad’s furniture store, a printed catalog was published with images of IKEA products and prices set for the goods. Then, just like today, it was simply thrown into mailboxes.

Only then - Sweden, and today - the whole world.

The law, which Ingvar Kamprad established once and for all, says: you cannot sell things above the price indicated in the catalog throughout the entire year. Cheaper - possible. More expensive - no, no.

In 1952, at the annual Stockholm fair, Ingvar Kamprad first introduced furniture to the general public at surprisingly low prices, and it shocked Sweden. Then Kamprad went to America, where he saw Cash & Carry stores, traditionally located in the suburbs in the United States. And Kamprad said: “I have an idea!” It was then that the company we know now was born in his mind. He correctly reasoned that the future of global transport lies in personal cars; most people will be able to travel to nearby suburbs to purchase inexpensive and relatively high-quality furniture. The stores are organized like huge warehouses, where some of the products can be picked up yourself, without involving the store staff or using them to a minimum. Thus, first in Stockholm, then in Ingvar’s small homeland, and subsequently all over the world, stores with yellow and blue signs - IKEA - opened.

Attitude towards the buyer.

Despite all the cheapness of goods in Kamprad's stores, it cannot be said that they are ugly, uncomfortable or do not care about customers. Yes, sparkling wine is not served in tall glasses, but there is a place where you can leave the child, where you can have a snack, not too tasty, I must say, but satisfying and inexpensive. Delivery and assembly available. In short, any whim for your money. But nothing is forced. And even (in what other store is this possible?) there is a huge poster hanging, saying, if you change your mind, no problem!

We will take our goods back!

It must be said that Ingvar himself was known as one of the stingiest people in the world. Of course! Being a billionaire, he surprised the world community by traveling by public transport, having the simplest house, and when traveling abroad, he lived in three-star hotels and ate in inexpensive cafes. Let us note that a person who strives to help nature and people simply does not deserve to be accused of stinginess. He calls attentiveness and observation one of his main qualities that influenced business. Tell me, how can you be considerate of the middle class by staying in a penthouse and dining in places where one dish costs as much as a mid-range entrepreneur's car? That's right, no way. Therefore, spiteful critics, keep your hands off Ingvar Kamprad!

Ingvar Kamprad - our days.

The creator of IKEA is Ingvard Kampard.

Yes, even at the age of seventy, he visits up to twenty stores a day to study the problem of whether the quality of a product matches the price at which it is offered. His favorite question to ask buyers is: “How much would you pay for this?” Yes, Ingvar still loves it to this day public speaking with pulling garbage out of the basket and saying that this item could be put to use! And at the same time, he is not at all a crazy old man, but a genius who has found his niche and skillfully changes the world for the better.

The result is obvious - prices at IKEA are 20-30% lower than those of competitors.

A simple white pass-through shelving unit has been successfully sold in all countries for twenty years - fact!

Currently, the company is run by Ingvar’s sons, and his business is alive, as you can see by simply looking at your mailbox from time to time. And not Should we go to IKEA? on the weekend?

Anyone who has been to IKEA knows that there you can get free writing instruments and donate batteries. But there are pens that are not just given away in stores, but are sold at very reputable auctions.

Video: Megafactories - IKEA

IKEA (Russian: Ikea) is a Dutch manufacturing and trading group of companies, owner of retail chains selling furniture and household goods. Founded in 1943 in Sweden, full name - IKEA International Group.

Brand IKEA

Facts about the company

Every third European alive today was conceived on Ikea beds.

If all the furniture from this manufacturer was stacked on top of each other, then it would be possible to climb on it to the moon.
If all the people who work in furniture production are placed in one place, then a whole city will be needed.
Initially, the production of this furniture was located in a shed in the backyard of the creator, Ingvar Kamprad.
A daily walk through the nearest Ikea furniture complex can replace a trip to the gym.
In order to visit all the Ikea furniture stores in the world, it will take at least 5 years if you do it 8 hours a day.
Listing the range of Ikea furniture out loud will take two days of reading without interruption.
If all the Ikea furniture were collected and set on fire, the released energy would be enough to heat a small country.
If you decide to sleep on a new Ikea bed every night, you will need 122 lives to sleep on the already produced ones.
If you collect all the wrappers with pimples from furniture packaging from this manufacturer, then to pop these pimples you will need the help of the entire population of the planet for a month.
In the soundtrack to the film "Fight Club" there is a composition called English. Ikea Man (literally “Ikea Man”). And in the film itself, the main character talks about how he had a mania to furnish his apartment with furniture and things bought from IKEA.
In March 2007, a conflict occurred between the Roma community of the city of Yekaterinburg and the IKEA shopping center due to the fact that the following was stated on the poster about the rules for using parking and access roads: “Immediately remove from the territory shopping center security service persons on skateboards, roller skates, bicycles, as well as gypsies, people without a fixed abode, beggars, leaflet distributors, hooligans, various informal companies.” IKEA management removed the poster and apologized. The parties came to reconciliation without going to court.
The name "IKEA" stands for "Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd", that is, the name of the founder and the name of the farm (Elmtaryd) in the parish of Agunnaryd where he lived.
The company's product names consist of one word. Most of the names are of Swedish origin.
The American company - developer and publisher of computer video games Electronic Arts has released a catalog for the line of games The Sims 2 called “Ideas from IKEA” (English: The Sims 2: IKEA Home Stuff)

It is believed that in the apartment of every Western European family there is at least one thing with the IKEA logo. This is not necessarily furniture. Some accessory, toy, underwear - something from IKEA. Even if you yourself didn’t buy anything at all from a chain store, you were sure to inherit something from relatives or end up in your apartment as a gift.

At one time, the spread of IKEA across Europe was called an epidemic. Since the opening of the first stores in Russia, the IKEA epidemic has taken over our country. IKEA is loved for its democratic originality (the company's findings in the field of design are recognized as outstanding by all design schools in the world) and despised for its mass appeal and universality (no matter where you look, there are identical floor lamps and sofas). A global brand in all its contradictions. The founder, 80-year-old Ingvard Kamprad, has been creating it since he was 20 years old. IKEA started out selling coffee tables and is now the largest furniture company in the world.

History of IKEA

Ingvar Kamprad was born in the small Swedish town of Elmhult (now a real tourist Mecca: thousands of people flock there to see the billionaire’s homeland; Kamprad’s first store is also located there) in 1926. Kamprad's biographers believe that Ingvar's passion for trade was inherited. In 1897, the company, owned by the grandfather of the future billionaire, was on the verge of bankruptcy. The head of the family was unable to pay his mortgage and committed suicide. But Ingvar’s grandmother manages to save the matter.

Kamprad himself started making money by selling matches. This is how he himself recalls his childhood activity: “My aunt helped me buy the first hundred boxes of matches at the so-called “88 era” sale (something like our “Everything for 10” - ed.), and my aunt didn’t even charged me for postage. After that, I sold matches for two or three øre per box, and some even for 5 øre. I still remember the pleasant feeling I felt when I made my first profit. At that time I was no more than five years old. Later I started selling Christmas cards and wall art. I caught fish and then rode around on my bike and sold them around. I collected lingonberries and sent them by bus to a buyer in another city. At eleven, my main business was selling seeds. This was my first big deal, and I made enough money to replace my mother’s old bike with a new racing model.” But the greatest demand was for fountain pens: in the early forties they were a novelty even in Sweden. Kamprad ordered 500 of these pens from Paris, taking out a loan of 500 crowns (at that time $63) from the district bank for purchase. According to Kamprad, this was the first and last loan he took out in his life. Fashion goods were supplied by a French company. She then demanded that their distributor register own enterprise. Kamprad persuaded his father to help him complete the paperwork, and soon IKEA was born (“Ingvard Kamprad, Elmtaryd in Agunaryd” - the first letters of the first and last name, the name of his father’s farm and the church parish where the head of the future corporation grew up). This happened in 1943. At that time, its creator was 17 years old. At this time, Kamprad had already gotten off his bike and switched to distributing goods by mail. And to the pens and matches he added the most simple little things, like stationery, wallets, nylon stockings and mosquito repellents.

The first entrepreneurial steps of IKEA founder Ingvard Kamprad, his early, as he himself calls it, “craving for profit” are apparently one of the most important subjective conditions for success. The desire to earn money is at the genetic level. The Swedish billionaire never studied at university (at school, teachers for a long time could not teach him to read), but the business strategy that he applied at IKEA is studied in many higher education institutions. educational institutions Europe.

Finally, in 1948, Kamprad came up with the idea to switch to furniture. Kamprad negotiates with small furniture manufacturers and begins selling two models - an armchair without armrests and a coffee table. Kamprad named the chair “Ruth” (he always believed that it was difficult to remember the names of inventory items). Since then, IKEA has decided to give furniture names. At the same time, several more of Kamprad’s business principles were born. First, he began sending out a small brochure to his customers called “IKEA News” - it became the prototype of the company’s famous catalog. Secondly, the young entrepreneur immediately began to focus on buyers with average incomes. Therefore, he orders the most inexpensive models from nearby furniture factories. Even then he came to his famous formula: “How to sell 60 chairs at high price, it’s better to reduce the price and sell 600 chairs.”

In 1951, Kamprad acquired an old factory where he began producing cheap, simple furniture. Gradually his company, thanks to affordable prices, gained fame in Sweden. However, such trade policy became the reason for the boycott that the Swedish National Association of Furniture Sellers declared on Kamprad in the late 50s, outraged by the low prices for IKEA products. Under pressure from the association, leading loggers began to refuse to cooperate with Kamprad. As a result, the entrepreneur had to take a step that was unusual for a Swedish business at that time: he began purchasing some of the components necessary for assembling furniture “cheaply” from Polish suppliers. Thus, the founder of IKEA laid down the company’s future strategy - to place orders for goods in those countries where it costs less.

In the early 60s, Kamprad made an educational trip to America. There he first saw stores selling using the Cash&Carry system. He liked the trading scheme itself: huge stores are located outside the city, and customers serve themselves - they put goods in a cart and take them to their car.

When IKEA opened a large store near Stockholm in 1963, much of it was designed taking into account the American experience, albeit creatively reworked. Firstly, it was a suburb: land prices there are much lower, and there is a place to park a car. Secondly, in order to reduce transportation costs, the company ordered dismountable furniture, where each piece was placed in a flat package. This made it easier and cheaper to transport them. The buyers themselves had to assemble the furniture. Kamprad has long noticed that people actually like to assemble their own cabinets and sofas. Especially if you make the assembly procedure simple with detailed instructions.

In 1969, the company opened a store in Denmark and built distribution center in Elmhult. The last step, from a common sense point of view, is not uncontroversial. Where can there be so many buyers in the outback? But Ingvar knew that a car boom had begun in Sweden. And I realized that for serious purchases people are ready to travel even to distant lands. To encourage customers, the IKEA store began selling roof racks for cars. Of course, at a bargain price. Thanks to this policy, the company's turnover doubled in one year. The store itself, called Kungens Kurva, appearance resembled the New York Guggenheim Museum, which Kamprad really liked. During the grand opening of the store, a huge scandal almost broke out. No one expected that so many people would arrive on the first day. Thirty thousand Swedes certainly wanted to buy furniture at low prices. The store, although so large, did not have so many goods. And the crowd, sweeping away everything in its path, somewhat contradicted the principle preached by IKEA. Here it was customary to have a leisurely discussion about which bookcase would suit the soft chair, accompanied by a cup of delicious coffee.

Kamprad made the only right decision in this situation - to let customers into the warehouse. This is how IKEA accidentally came up with its signature formula: a store-warehouse. It was with Kungens Kurva that the company's operating style was finally and forever determined. Now every IKEA furniture store is a kind of exhibition center. Where not only sofas and wardrobes are displayed, but also any small household items: tablecloths, curtains, bedspreads, towels and candlesticks. Moreover, all this is placed as it should be in real life. Thus, a store visitor can first examine ten children's rooms in a row, and then twenty-five dining rooms or living rooms, and so on. Having figured out how this or that model looks in a real interior, and having chosen the appropriate one, the buyer must go to the warehouse to get it. In convenient packaging, he transports the piece of furniture to his home and assembles it there himself, reading clear and understandable instructions.

After such success in its homeland, IKEA had no choice but to develop foreign markets. Decisions were made spontaneously. For example, the head of the company hesitated for a long time: should he open a store in Switzerland? The country was known for its conservative tastes, and two local chains were well established there furniture stores. But one day, Kamprad, walking around Zurich, overheard a conversation between a young couple. “Beautiful chair!” - said the young woman, looking at the display case. “But it’s not affordable for us yet. Let’s buy it next year,” her husband answered. This episode decided the whole matter. And soon IKEA appeared in Switzerland (in 1973). And then in Germany, Austria, Great Britain, USA. In fact, apart from Africa and Asia, IKEA is now present everywhere, including in China. But it is the European market that provides it with the most sales.

In 1976, the development of the New World began - the IKEA store appeared in Canada. In 1981, the company opened its first store in Paris. There are now 10 IKEA stores in France, and it has overtaken Sweden in terms of sales share. True, cheap Swedish furniture has a specific reputation in France. The French apologize to the guests: “We bought furniture from IKEA - we are tight on money right now.”

Since the early 90s, the company has been active in Eastern Europe. The Swedes came to Russia at the invitation of Nikolai Ryzhkov. While on an official visit to Sweden in 1990, the then chairman of the USSR government expressed the wish that IKEA purchase products from Russian furniture makers. Representatives of the company visited the then Soviet country and decided that the idea was quite sound. Today the company works with approximately 30 Russian factories scattered throughout the country.

IKEA Business Principles

The IKEA business concept was formed over almost ten years, from the late fifties to the late sixties of the last century. All this time, the company's founder, Ingvar Kamprad, turned IKEA's difficulties into its advantages. For example, we were the first to place our orders abroad. For what? It so happened that in the sixties, all Swedish furniture manufacturers declared a boycott of Kamprad. He was literally hated for selling sofas and armchairs at the lowest prices in the country. To get out of this situation, furniture had to be produced in Poland. It turned out that it was much cheaper and more effective than doing the same thing in Sweden. Prices at IKEA have become even lower.

There were difficulties with delivery. Traditionally, furniture was assembled directly in factories, and while it was being transported to the buyer, it often broke: legs fell off, glass doors broke, and the surface was scratched. In order not to lose money on this, Kamprad decided to sell furniture in disassembled form. This again led to savings and allowed prices to be lowered even further. Another example. In Europe in the middle of the last century, furniture was sold only in small showrooms. But because of the cheapness, too many people began to come to us, and we could not cope. I had to build a large store outside the city. There we could serve more customers and save on land rent. As soon as the first large country store opened, it turned out that it was very profitable. (Anders Dahlvig, general manager IKEA). The Swedish company offered the buyer a holistic concept for home improvement (furniture and all kinds of accessories plus design advice), and this idea turned out to be brilliant.

In addition, in large country stores, along with furniture, they sell everything that is necessary to create a complete interior: flowers in pots, photo frames, dishes, candles, chandeliers, curtains, bed linen and children's toys. When the UK authorities recommended that IKEA open small “theme” stores in the city, instead of building giant suburban hangars, the indignant response was: “This will never happen! “Everything under one roof” is our sacred concept.”

All IKEA stores outside Sweden are painted yellow and blue to emphasize the company's Swedish identity. The style of the goods also speaks about nationality - the assortment is the same everywhere. Near the cash registers in all the company's stores there are departments that are not IKEA's core business: they sell Swedish national food.

Inattention to the characteristics, habits and tastes of the local consumer sometimes leads to oddities. At the first IKEA store in the United States, opened in 1976, demand for medium-sized vases outpaced supply. It turned out that Americans were buying them up because the mugs and glasses offered at IKEA were not large enough by American standards. Now IKEA has specialists who study regional specifics by visiting consumers' homes. It turned out that Americans prefer to store clothes folded, while Italians prefer to store them on hangers; Spaniards, unlike Scandinavians, love to decorate their home with framed pictures, prefer bright colors in the interior, love large dining tables and wide sofas. “It’s very easy to forget about the reality that people live in,” says Mats Nilsson, design director.

One Harvard Business School study argues that IKEA uses subtle coercion to subtly force customers to spend more time in its stores (which increases the amount of money they spend there). This will also be supported by a planning solution. trading floors- it’s easy to enter the complex; it takes a long time to get out. IKEA turns ordinary shopping into a pleasant pastime. Children can be left in the play area, elegant displays inspire and stimulate the buyer, and wide aisles eliminate crowding. You can rest and refresh yourself in cozy cafes offering various bonuses and unique Swedish meatballs. It is also important that sellers do not pounce on buyers like vultures, so they can relax and look around. If necessary, it is not difficult to find a consultant in a bright yellow and blue uniform. IKEA's "soft coercion" reaches its apogee in its ability to anticipate consumer needs that he is unaware of. The main thing is to “promote” a new fetish, and it will bring in money. For example, the company released a medium-sized metal clothespin with a rubber ring so that you can hang a magazine on a towel hook. We don't know how many shoppers have agonized over reading a magazine in the bathroom, but the humble clothespin quickly became a bestseller. Two factors worked: visibility (neatly hung clothespins with magazines in the exhibition bathroom act magically, convincing of the need for a purchase), as well as price (clothespins are so cheap that you can buy them just “just in case”). Such products at IKEA are informally called “hot dogs” - they are cheaper than sausages in the cafeteria.

IKEA Pricing

According to Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA prices should take your breath away. The company is not shy about stating that its prices are competitors' prices divided by two. There is also a “second-tier tactic”: if a competitor launches a cheaper similar product, IKEA immediately develops the next version of this product at a price that can’t be beat.

“It’s easy to create beautiful and expensive things, but try to create a beautiful, functional thing that will be cheap,” Josephine Rydberg-Dumont voices the company’s pricing philosophy. When developing the next product, IKEA first sets a limit above which the price should not rise, and only then the designers (there are more than 90 of them) puzzle over how to fit into these limits. No product will go into production unless there is a way to make it affordable. The creation of products sometimes takes several years. For example, the creation of the PS Ellan dining table ($39.99) with flexible but stable legs took more than a year and a half, during which time it was possible to invent an inexpensive material (a mixture of rubber and sawdust) that allows it to achieve the desired properties.

IKEA's international success also seems to be due to the fact that the middle class in most countries of the world is more or less identical. If not in income, then in outlook on life and ideas about style. The system-forming style of IKEA is functionality, simplicity, ingenuity and declared individuality. According to the company, the main idea promoted by this style is that the vast majority of people, in principle, have everything they need to be happy - they just forget about it or don’t pay attention. And in order to bring them to this simple conclusion, you need very little - suggest changing the decor in the kitchen, installing a convenient shelving unit in the office, or purchasing some funny little thing that will enliven the interior of the living room. This is the “HISTORICAL OPTIMISM” preached by IKEA, which is the basis marketing strategy companies.

IKEA personality

In particular, IKEA fundamentally refuses to divide things into beautiful and ugly. The style of a home can include very different, sometimes very basic, unpretentious and unexpected objects and materials - from great-grandmother's boxes to ultra-modern lamps, and the degree of their aesthetics depends on a whole set of conditions that shape a specific human environment. Therefore, the company’s products are usually demonstrated in specific interiors: the technique is almost a win-win, since an item that is completely nondescript at first glance and seems absolutely unnecessary to the buyer often attracts his attention precisely due to the surrounding environment and forces him to purchase it.

IKEA, like any other global brand, has a controversial consumer reputation. For example, the company has long been deservedly reproached for the imposed standardization of the environment - there is no talk of any individuality, which the company likes to talk about. Of course, this irritates many people. The company, however, has enough self-irony to joke about this topic. Before opening a store in a new country, the company always does a little research. They ask if customers like their furniture. And they always get the same result - absolutely no one likes IKEA furniture. This happened in Italy, and in Germany, and in Russia, and in other countries. The company gets acquainted with these results and opens a store. As soon as it opens, the boom begins.

Overall, IKEA recognizes that the company has room to move. The company thinks like this: a person buys furniture not only for himself, but also for his neighbors. He chooses inexpensive and functional furniture from IKEA. Places it in bedrooms, kitchens and children's rooms. Where he spends most of his time, and where it is not customary for outsiders to be allowed. But in the living room, in order to puff out their cheeks in front of their neighbors, they buy mahogany sets and leather sofas. We have conquered kitchens and bedrooms, they say at IKEA, now our task is to conquer the living rooms of our customers.

Ingvar Kamprad

The phenomenal success of IKEA is inextricably linked with the personality of its founder. Some even argue that IKEA rests solely on Kamprad and the loyal “old guard”, bearers of IKEA culture. And although his adult children take part in management, without the main “pastor” the company will lose its charm. It seems that Kamprad himself is aware of this, which is why he so carefully creates a cult of traditions, tying IKEA to its notorious roots. Kamprad is now in his ninth decade; he has officially retired a long time ago, but still accepts active participation in IKEA activities. “Papa Ingvar” is present at openings, inspects existing stores, asking about everything from the organization of trade to the cost of lunch for employees.

Kamprad is easy to talk to, he likes to appear unexpectedly among employees, exchange a few phrases, or even give a lecture, which is usually listened to with bated breath. This man manages to convey his grief to his listeners. According to Christopher Bartlett, a professor at Harvard Business School, “When Kamprad speaks, everyone around him is electrified.”

He is a workaholic. He worked from morning to evening both in his youth and in his mature years. And even today, having been a man of retirement age for ten years now, and - partly - having stepped aside from business, he keeps the ever-expanding empire under strict and vigilant control. Constantly traveling from Lausanne to Sweden and other countries of the world, Kamprad inspects about 20 department stores a year one after another. However, such inspections are perceived by department store employees with joy rather than fear. In general, the “IKEA family,” as Kamprad himself calls his huge staff, generally loves “Papa Ingvar,” a stingy but caring man. He is keenly interested in everything - from the cost of lunch in the employee canteen to the organization of personnel work at each work site. As a good leader, he knows that “personnel decide everything.”

Being, first of all, a businessman, and then a father, he “excommunicated” his three sons from the throne. Each of them works at the IKEA concern, each will receive a huge sum from their father's legacy. But Kamprad does not allow them to lead his empire. “You can’t run a concern with three people,” he explains. “Having given preference to one, I will destroy my brainchild with the internecine struggle of my sons.” Such certainty - on the verge of cruelty - in individual decisions made by Kamprad, causes some comparisons with a sect. An IKEA sect in which everyone submits to the will of their father and patron.

IKEA - problems, rumors, gossip, reputation

Not everything is perfect in the IKEA saga. Critics grumble about poor service, queues and crowding, while unclear assembly instructions and sometimes missing screws and nuts are called a blatant mockery of the buyer. There are also those who contemptuously call IKEA’s mass design “consumer goods” in which individuality is lost. More “toothed” critics say that IKEA has an aggressive business style, that the company puts pressure on suppliers, forcing them to change the product line, “pacifies” the recalcitrant... The company is criticized for the quality of individual products, and afforestation defenders accuse them of all mortal sins. But, according to customer reviews, IKEA remains a symbol of global unity, a sweet word for millions of its fans, no matter what critics say.

During the existence of the concern, its reputation was repeatedly under threat. In the mid-80s, a big scandal broke out related to the use of a toxic substance - formaldehyde - in the company's products. For the first time, the company managed to get out of the situation in a rather unconventional way: IKEA allocated about $3 million for GREENPEACE research programs. After this, similar scandals took place until the end of the 90s, but they did not cause serious damage to the company’s image, thanks to the already described know-how in communicating with environmentalists.

IKEA: Economy should be economical

There are legends about Kamprad's miserliness. When he goes on business trips - and he has to go often - he lives in a three-star hotel, and at breakfast (if it is included in the price of the stay) he eats to his fill, so as not to open his wallet until the evening. When he has to pay for food out of his own pocket, our millionaire goes to second-rate restaurants, not hesitating to kill the worm with a hamburger. He never rides in a taxi unless absolutely necessary. In public transport, he says, it is much cheaper to travel, and there is an opportunity to communicate with people, whose tastes and needs a good businessman needs to know. When going on business, he books tickets exclusively in second class, and numerous photographs of Kamprad indicate that he dresses cheaply and often sloppily (which a real billionaire can easily afford). “At my age, it’s stupid to waste money,” Ingvar explains to journalists, who have been persistently asking for decades what explains his greed, and advises them to get to know his eldest son Peter, who has outdone his father with his stinginess.

“How can I demand frugality from the people who work for me if I spend my time in luxury and comfort” Ingvar Kamprad.

Strict principles of economy apply within the corporation itself. IKEA maintains prices thanks to a clearly structured strategy. The Swedish company orders its furniture only from places where it is produced cheaply. The company produces 10% of its ten thousand product range itself, and buys the rest. Moreover, he literally buys in parts: tabletops - in one country, table legs - in another. This is done in order to reduce costs.

Maximum savings everywhere and in everything is the general strategic line of the company from the first days and throughout its existence. Savings begin with the development of models of future branded products, which IKEA designers work in direct contact with manufacturers to avoid multiple adjustments. It continues as suppliers search for the most suitable options for raw materials and materials in terms of cost and quality, their wholesale purchase for the entire batch planned for production, includes all processes for manufacturing products - almost always serial and in-line, with maximum optimization and automation of technological operations. Finally, it ends in IKEA stores, where the practice of “self-service warehouses” is widespread, from which customers independently pick up furniture disassembled and packed in flat boxes.

Ingvar Kamprad himself revealed the pricing policy at IKEA in an interview. A family with an average or lower average income is taken into account. It is calculated how much she is able to spend on home improvement and on each pillow or floor lamp separately. In this way, the optimal cost of each item is determined. Next, the company’s specialists create its technical description and see which supplier can ensure its high-quality implementation within the budget. Sometimes company managers help the manufacturer master new technology. Perhaps today such a technique no longer surprises anyone, but when IKEA started, it seemed like a revolution.

IKEA, in a sense, is also a symbol of economic stability. Prices for goods approved and published in the seasonal catalog do not change throughout the year. The only thing that can change them is discounts as part of regular sales that the company holds.

Thrift is an element of the company's business strategy and the main quality of its founder. With the blessing of Ingvar Kamprad, the concept of luxury is absent at IKEA. Top managers fly on business meetings economy class and stay in inexpensive hotels. Kamprad himself drinks expensive drinks from the hotel minibar, if only later he can replace them with cheaper ones bought in the nearest supermarket. The billionaire allegedly does not shun magazine coupons for free parking and often uses public transport. It is not surprising that the free models during the filming of the annual IKEA catalog are employees of the company.

The founder amazes those around him with his outward modesty and teaches: “Money spoils a person. They should be used as resources for investment, not as a means to satisfy whims." In 2006, the Swedish press named Kamprad the richest man on the planet, surpassing Bill Yates himself, but IKEA’s intricate ownership system does not allow an accurate calculation of the Swedish businessman’s assets, so the sensation is not documented.

Kamprad's economy is not coquetry, flirting with the people - they say, I'm no better than you. This is a life credo and at the same time part of the IKEA philosophy. “Every crown is a crown,” Kamprad likes to say, that is, “a penny saves a ruble.” In his opinion, many techniques of designers - super fashionable and modern - make furniture more expensive and, therefore, inaccessible to the general consumer. That is why IKEA designers must have an understanding of the entire furniture production chain - from idea to delivery finished product to the store and from there to the buyer. This helps the designer understand the pricing process, and prices in turn should be kept as low as possible. This is why IKEA furniture is sold as semi-finished products that are assembled by buyers at home. This reduces the cost of storage and transportation. For the same savings, design centers serve all IKEA markets. Orders for furniture production are placed all over the world - wherever it is cheaper.

“IKEA’s business philosophy is defined by one golden rule: treat every problem as a new opportunity. Challenges provide amazing opportunities. When we were prohibited from buying the same furniture that was made for others, we began to come up with our own designs, and we developed our own style. When we lost suppliers in our country, the rest of the world opened up to us,” recalls Kamprad.

According to Ingvar Kamprad, any business should remain in touch with its roots. Therefore, every employee of the IKEA “family” of thousands scattered around the world knows by heart the saga of the birth of the company. Its headquarters are located not in fashionable Stockholm, but in the village of Älmhult, where the first furniture pavilion was opened in 1953. There is also a museum where you can learn about the milestones of her business journey. For IKEA, the historical heritage is integral component success corporate culture and business philosophy, on which more than one generation of managers and ordinary workers has been brought up.

Researchers say that teams and companies driven by a great idea are more productive, even if they final goal- earn money. IKEA was initially guided by high idea, encapsulated in the slogan “A better life for many.” Ingvar Kamprad wanted people all over the world to be able to buy beautiful furniture and home decor, and this desire turned into a mission. British magazine Icon wrote: “If it weren’t for IKEA, modern home design would be out of reach for most people.” And Icon called Kamprad himself “the person who had the most powerful influence on consumer tastes.”

The future existence of IKEA cannot be called cloudless: an aging population developed countries does not feel proper enthusiasm for the “simple and modern” design; rivals with similar products are actively promoting on the market: Italian Argos, Danish Ilva. In addition, traditional trade is threatened by the boom in online shopping. However, IKEA is not afraid of this: its stores offer the buyer an irreplaceable visual and tactile experience and real pleasure from spending time. IKEA counters the other “threats” with an unprecedented emotional response in the hearts of millions of customers around the world....

Brand IKEA

Facts about the company

Every third European alive today was conceived on Ikea beds.

If all the furniture from this manufacturer was stacked on top of each other, then it would be possible to climb on it to the moon.
If all the people who work in furniture production are placed in one place, then a whole city will be needed.
Initially, the production of this furniture was located in a shed in the backyard of the creator, Ingvar Kamprad.
A daily walk through the nearest Ikea furniture complex can replace a trip to the gym.
In order to visit all the Ikea furniture stores in the world, it will take at least 5 years if you do it 8 hours a day.
Listing the range of Ikea furniture out loud will take two days of reading without interruption.
If all the Ikea furniture were collected and set on fire, the released energy would be enough to heat a small country.
If you decide to sleep on a new Ikea bed every night, you will need 122 lives to sleep on the already produced ones.
If you collect all the wrappers with pimples from furniture packaging from this manufacturer, then to pop these pimples you will need the help of the entire population of the planet for a month.
In the soundtrack to the film "Fight Club" there is a composition called English. Ikea Man (literally “Ikea Man”). And in the film itself, the main character talks about how he had a mania to furnish his apartment with furniture and things bought from IKEA.
In March 2007, a conflict occurred between the Roma community of the city of Yekaterinburg and the IKEA shopping center due to the fact that a poster about the rules for using parking and access roads stated the following: “Persons on skateboards, roller skates, etc. will be immediately removed from the territory of the shopping center by the security service. bicycles, as well as gypsies, people without a fixed abode, beggars, distributors of leaflets, hooligans, and various informal companies.” IKEA management removed the poster and apologized. The parties came to reconciliation without going to court.
The name "IKEA" stands for "Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd", that is, the name of the founder and the name of the farm (Elmtaryd) in the parish of Agunnaryd where he lived.
The company's product names consist of one word. Most of the names are of Swedish origin.
The American company - developer and publisher of computer video games Electronic Arts has released a catalog for the line of games The Sims 2 called “Ideas from IKEA” (English: The Sims 2: IKEA Home Stuff)

Slogan: Home is the most important place in the world
Make a house a home
Improving everyday life for the majority
Affordable solutions for better living
Not for the rich but for the wise

A company that owns the largest retail chain selling furniture and various household goods. Products IKEA especially popular in Europe. It is believed that in the countries of Western Europe there is not a single house, not a single apartment, where it would not be possible to find something purchased in IKEA. And although it is believed that the furniture of this brand is not of very high quality, affordability determines its popularity.

The company was founded in 1943 when young entrepreneur Ingvar Kamprad founded the company IKEA, which sold writing instruments. He was 17 years old then. The name of the company is an abbreviation, which stands for the following: the initials of the creator ( I ngvar K amprad), to which Ingvar added the name of the farm on which he grew up ( E lmtaryd), located in the parish A gunnaryd (Agunnaryd), which is in southern Sweden. That is IKEA- This Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd.

To say that Ingvar was a talented businessman is to say nothing. It is no coincidence that he eventually became one of the richest people in the world with a multi-billion dollar fortune. With a lot of effort, he managed to promote his business. Still the Second world war had little effect on Sweden, which was essentially an ally of both the Third Reich and its opponents. Military operations took place somewhere to the side, without interfering with the daily life of ordinary Swedes.

The range that the company sold was constantly expanding. Mainly due to all sorts of little things, like stationery, underwear and household chemicals. The idea to start making furniture came in 1948. And this furniture had to be inexpensive, so that the average person with a low income could afford it. Having thought about all this, Ingvar agreed with several small manufacturers who began to produce furniture to his order. Success came quickly; already in 1951, the businessman acquired a small factory, where he began to produce furniture on his own. At the same time, he began printing his first product catalogue.

And here we had to face the first problems. Furniture in those years was not a luxury, but a very expensive product. With his actions, Ingvar greatly interfered with other Swedish manufacturers. As a result, they managed to persuade logging companies to stop cooperating with IKEA. Anyone else would have given up. But not Ingvar! Having considered the current situation, he began to purchase the necessary components in Poland, while also benefiting in price. It was then that the idea was born to simplify the assembly and delivery of furniture as much as possible by making it a prefabricated unit, like a kind of construction set. And although this required some effort on the part of consumers, they were satisfied, since it became much easier to deliver the purchase home, and its price dropped even more.

By the end of the 50s, IKEA stores began to appear throughout the country, where you could not only buy furniture and other goods, but also have a cup of coffee. And the prices were simply pleasing to the eyes. All the stores were large in size and were located outside the city - Ingvar “spotted” this system from the American trading network Cash & Carry.

By the early 60s, Ingvar realized that his company was ripe to enter the world market. The conquest began first of the neighboring Scandinavian countries, and then of all of Europe.

To date IKEA is one of the largest corporations retail. Her retail outlets are located in dozens of countries around the world. Hundreds of thousands of people work for it. Product catalogs are published in hundreds of millions of copies in various languages. The prices printed in them traditionally do not change throughout the year, regardless of any circumstances. Many shops IKEA operate under a franchise system.

Ingvar himself is no longer the owner of the empire he created, which has belonged to the Netherlands since 1982. INGKA Holding B.V., which is the parent company of a charitable (according to the poisonous statement of some journalists and analysts, a pseudo-charitable) foundation Stichting Ingka Foundation. It is believed that the reason he took this step is that Swedish taxes are too high. The company's head office is located in the Dutch province of South Holland (Zuid Holland) in Delft, a town located near Rotterdam. But in general, the structure of the holding is incredibly complex and confusing, it includes dozens of companies of different types from different founders. There is an opinion that such difficulties are deliberately created in order to minimize taxes.