Swedish mega-brand Ikea was founded by Småland-born Ingvar Kamprad (1926) in 1943. According to legend, Kamprad even as a boy had big dreams of starting his own business, and he was able to launch Ikea at age 17 through a small loan from his father as a reward for doing well in school. The name is an acronym for “Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd”—Elmataryd being the name of the farm where Kamprad grew up, and Agunnaryd the name of his hometown. The company’s philosophy from the beginning was grounded in a Swedish socialist tenant: “people who are not well off should be given the same opportunities as people who are.” In the early years, Ikea did not sell the furniture for which it is now famous; instead, it sold a variety of household items, like soap, pens, and stockings, at first locally and then by mail order through print advertisements. Ikea launched its first furniture line in 1948 with a few armchairs and tables produced by artisans in the Småland region. The first annual Ikea catalogue was issued in 1951.
When Ikea began retailing furniture at factory prices by mail order in the early 1950s, the established furniture trade saw this move as disruptive to their business. Ikea was not permitted to exhibit in the major furniture fair in Stockholm for decades, and suppliers were encouraged to cease working with Ikea. Kamprad was not deterred. In the mid-to-late-1950s, he commissioned Gillis Lundgren—an Ikea employee—along with Danish designers Bengt Ruda and Erik Wørts, to create new Ikea furniture lines grounded in the modernist concepts of affordability, modularity, interchangeable parts, flat-packing, and self-assembly. The first Ikea showroom opened in Älmhult in 1958. The Tore Drawers (1958), Regal Bookshelf (1959), and Thonet-like Ölga Chair (1961) were among of the company’s first successes in modern furniture design. Ikea’s program for inexpensive, mass produced furnishings was greatly facilitated by the development of new materials in the 1960s, especially particleboard and plastics.
When problems with Swedish suppliers came to a head, Ikea moved production to Denmark and Poland. Still, sales volumes steadily grew, and Ikea opened more showrooms. In 1963, Ikea opened its first store outside of Sweden, in Norway, followed in 1969 by a location in Denmark. In the 1970s, Ikea expanded to Switzerland, Germany, Australia, Canada, Austria, and the Netherlands. Also in the 1970s, Ikea was one of the first furniture companies to introduce self-service storage shopping for customers and computer systems for distribution management. In 1986, Ingvar Kamprad retired from executive management, and Ikea was divided into three separate entities: Inter Ikea Group, Ingka Group, and Ikano Group. In 1998, Ikea opened its first store in China. Over the decades, Ikea has worked with myriad designers, both inside and outside Sweden. Iconic designs produced by Ikea include the wooden MTP Shelving System (1963) by Marian Grabinski; the space age Telegono Lamp (1970) by Vico Magistretti (originally designed for Artemide);
the convertible Tajt Chair (1973) by Gillis Lundgren; the molded plastic Skopa Chair (1974) by Olle Gjerlöv-Knudsen and Torben Lind; the bentwood Poäng Chair & Ottoman (1977) by Noboru Nakamura; the enduring Billy Shelving System (1978) by Gillis Lundgren; the pop, plastic Mammut Child’s Chair & Table (1993) by Morten Kjelstrup and Allan Østgaard; the vibrant and tectonic Vilbert Chair (1993) in MDF by Verner Panton; and the biomorphic, rattan Storvik Lounge Chair (2002) by Carl Öjerstam. Notably, Ikea developed a number of highly successful designs with Danish design Niels Gammelgaard, like the Folke Chair (1977), Ted Net Chair (1978), Järpen Chair (1980), Moment Sofa (1983), Moment Table (1985), Guide Shelf (1985), Oti Chair (1986), Natura Storage (1990), and Trofast Toy Storage (1994). Today, Ikea has more than 300 showrooms in nearly 30 countries and has built an incomparable international identity. Yearly worldwide sales have reached over 28 billion. The various Ikea companies and foundations are overseen by Ingka Holding B.V., and Ingvar Kamprad is senior advisor to the board.
The designs produced by the company remain dedicated to “simplicity is a virtue,” while increasingly exploring the possibility of eco-friendly mass production methods.Modern and bold furniture can make a statement or absolutely change the space. the more eye-catchy the finishes, upholstery and shapes are, the cooler it will look. if you love sculptural and bold furniture that strikes with cool design, you may like this Varhany chair! Flat-pack, foam and so fun! Three words that perfectly describe the Varhany Lounge Chair! Varhany chair is designed for young people who want to feel style, but can‘t invest to expensive furniture. Its shape is inspired by the music instrument used in the churches – an organ. This thoughtfully designed piece applies the versatile nature of foam padding in an entirely new way. Its main advantage is the variability of the upholstering, which every customer can configure as he or she wishes.It consists of several parts: side plates of plywood, support sticks, foam upholstering, allen screws, washers, a buckle, felt gliders.
Simple cardboard package copy the silhouette of the chair with 2 cm protection zone, and all the parts are tied together inside the package. The upholstering is packed into a fixed roll. Three flat wood parts are cut from a single plywood plate making it easy to transport or ship. After they’re attached, the foam roll is easily folded into place over the built-in rods that help it keep shape. The whole construction is fixed with 8mm allen screws. Unlike other flat-pack furniture, it’s extremely soft and comfortable without sacrificing movability! This is a perfect option for those who want to make a bold statement with furniture in their homes yet aren’t ready to pay much. They say that mimicry is the sincerest form of flattery…. Some people take IKEA‘s Do-It-Yourself ethos very seriously! By ignoring the retailer’s assembly instructions, designer Kieren Jones and artist Joe Scanlan offer some amusing twists on the Swedish chain’s nearly ubiquitous off-the-shelf designs.
Flat-Pack Rearranged, created by Kieren Jones, scrambles parts from two of IKEA’s best selling designs to create new products: a sled, decorative deer antlers, rifle, and a functional cross bow that shoots IKEA pencils. The collection of DIY manuals provide the user with detailed instruction for repurposing IKEA’s classic Poang chair and Bumerang clothes hangers into the new objects. Jones, a student at the University of Brighton (UK), was selected as one of 15 winners in the earlier this year. Similarly, if rather morbidly, Joe Scanlan‘s artist book DIY, or How To Kill Yourself Anywhere in the World for Under $399, offers detailed instructions for creating a coffin from standard IKEA parts. The fully illustrated publication can be puchased for $22.00 on his website. Like a kid jumbling his Lego kits to create more fantastic castles, we love the idea of folks repurposing mass produced objects to suit alternative needs and taste. Let’s hear it for more flat pack hijacking!