{"id":3598,"date":"2022-06-08T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-08T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mashup-communications.de\/2022\/06\/storytelling-close-up-ikea-every-piece-of-furniture-is-a-story\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T08:43:18","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T07:43:18","slug":"storytelling-ikea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mashup-communications.de\/en\/2022\/06\/storytelling-ikea\/","title":{"rendered":"Storytelling Close-Up IKEA: Every Piece of Furniture Is a Story"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is blue and yellow on the outside and equipped with BILLY, IVAR, K\u00f6ttbullar and a whole Sm\u00e5land on the inside? That’s correct, IKEA. Or in long form: I<\/strong>ngvar K<\/strong>amprad, who grew up on the farm E<\/strong>lmtaryd, originally from the small town of A<\/strong>gunnaryd. Since its founding in 1943, the world’s largest household furniture brand has achieved such cult status that a few keywords are all it takes to solve the riddle. The popularity is due to the unbeatable prices and products. But even more powerful are the stories that surround the company. IKEA uses the power of storytelling in every conceivable form of communication: visually in the catalogue, tangibly in the shop or emotionally in the well-known TV campaigns. Regardless of the channel, we are literally left with the desire to completely overhaul the interior design at home and redecorate everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Visual product storytelling: From the catalogue to the shop<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The founding history of the furniture company alone, filled with trials and successes, is enough to fill books – or a museum, which can be visited both in \u00c4lmhult, Sweden, and on the Internet<\/a>. Ingvar Kamprad was a visionary who revolutionised the furniture industry from the bottom up. The entrepreneur reformed the idea of product catalogues and store concepts, established completely new design principles and devised new ways of constructing furniture. And each of these innovations tells its own story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until the 1950s, a product catalogue consisted solely of what it literally said it contained: Products. But Ingvar Kamprad took a newer, modern approach. For his IKEA catalogues, the entrepreneur used the power of visual storytelling and for the first time integrated the sales items into shooting sets such as living rooms or bedrooms. What seems completely normal for us today was an absolute novelty at the time and provided an additional boost for the brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Source: IKEA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A trip to IKEA is not just a shopping trip. The big blue and yellow building block offers a shopping concept that certainly doesn’t occur a second time. In fact, the showrooms, which are based on home interiors containing all kinds of furnishing ideas, have been in operation since 1953. When the entrepreneur realised in the 1960s that hungry customers buy less, he opened the IKEA restaurants, which still remain today. A fire in the Swedish flagship store led to the construction of self-service warehouses in 1970. These areas became very popular in just a few months and were then permanently incorporated into the store concept. Kamprad accepted every challenge he faced, overcame it and turned the challenge into a new opportunity – obviously with success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A shopping trip at IKEA is much more like entering an unknown world. Visitors embark on their own hero’s journey through showrooms, furniture displays, self-service areas and often a stop at a restaurant. Along the way, they overcome challenges – such as finding the right kits in the warehouse – or meet allies – staff members who know where to find the parts they need – and celebrate victories. Finally, they return to their familiar world, their own homes. There, the shopping heroes can enjoy the elixir – the satisfaction of having raised their living circumstances to a new level – in peace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Storytelling through collaborations: Connected to the environment with the World Surf League<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While the eyes wander from KLIPPAN to IVAR to the BILLY shelf while strolling, many people are not even aware that quite a lot of storytelling potential has been drawn from the products themselves. With the introduction of the “Democratic Design” principle in 1995, the company developed a tool that sets out the principles of furniture production at IKEA. Five dimensions must be balanced in the development process: Form, function, quality, sustainability and low price. Sarah Fager, Senior Designer at IKEA Sweden, explains these standards as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThe form is for beauty, it\u2019s what attracts the eye, and the object has to be functional, otherwise it won\u2019t be used. When objects and materials last over time, that\u2019s quality. Being mindful of resources is something that has been with us since the start. We don\u2019t like complicated solutions and wastefulness, it\u2019s bad for everyone. Part of sustainability is about using exactly the right materials for the function, and using them sparingly, but sustainability also means taking responsibility all the way through a product\u2019s life.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Especially with regard to the aspect of sustainability, IKEA was well ahead of its industry at the time – and still follows this approach today. This principle now goes beyond democratic design and is particularly evident in the collaborations that the company enters into with brands, designers and even more unusual partners. One of these is with the World Surf League. The collaboration has been established since 2019, and the jointly designed product line was launched this year. The K\u00c5SEBERGA collection aims to encourage people to live in harmony with nature and to use recyclable, natural materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This cooperation is accompanied by an eleven-minute film that explains what IKEA has in common with surfers and their love for nature. In this campaign, viewers are also led into an unfamiliar world where they get to know Kassia, Rob and various decision-makers at IKEA. The company takes on the mentoring roles the architect and the muse. Together with the surfers, who are also designers, solutions are presented and inspiration offered on how to live close to nature in one’s own living space. At the end of the clip, there are various pieces of furniture inspired by surfing and a deeper emotional understanding of the need to establish a more sustainable lifestyle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are plenty of stories like this on the IKEA website. Each cooperation and collaboration is accompanied by a blog post, the partners are introduced in detail and the intention is explained. The brand collaborations include LEGO and adidas. A fragrance line was created with the London designer Ilse Crawford. And with Sonos and Spotify, music systems and Bluetooth speakers were added to the range.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transparency in the sense of defined how-values – as well in B2B communication<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

IKEA’s product development is not only guided by the principle of democratic design, but also by the \u201ehow-values” that the company has defined for itself. There are a total of eight “key values” that are reflected in the entire company philosophy and communication:<\/p>\n\n\n\n