IKEA#IKEA Family

{{See also|#Alternative store designs|#Ventures beyond furniture, homeware and Swedish food}}

File:Ikea Kungen 1965a.jpg (right) shakes hands with Hans Ax, IKEA's first store manager, in 1965.]]

In 1943, then-17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad founded IKEA as a mail-order sales business, and began to resell furniture five years later.{{Cite magazine|last=Collins|first=Lauren|title=House Perfect|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/10/03/house-perfect|access-date=8 September 2021|magazine=The New Yorker|date=26 September 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210908155337/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/10/03/house-perfect|archive-date=8 September 2021|url-status=live}} The first store was opened in Älmhult, Småland, Sweden in 1958, under the name Möbel-IKÉA (Möbel means "furniture" in Swedish). The name IKEA is an acronym that stands for Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd. The acronym is composed of the initials of the founder's name as well as Elmtaryd, which is the farm on which he grew up, and Agunnaryd, which is the village close to Elmtaryd.{{Cite news |title=About IKEA – Our heritage |url=https://www.ikea.com/us/en/this-is-ikea/about-us/our-heritage-pubde78e100#:~:text=Did%20you%20know?,%22 |access-date=2024-11-01 |website=www.ikea.com |language=en-US}}

[[File:Map of IKEA stores.svg|thumb|300x300px|Map of countries with IKEA stores

Legend:

{{legend|#006AA7|Current market locations}}

{{legend|#FECC00|Future market locations}}

{{legend|#c50b1e|Former market locations}}

{{legend|#C0C0C0|No current or planned market locations}}]]

The first stores outside Sweden were opened in Norway (1963) and Denmark (1969).{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-first-store-history-in-sweden-in-1958-2019-9|title=Here's what the first Ikea store ever looked like when it opened in Sweden more than 60 years ago|last=Ciment|first=Shoshy|website=Business Insider|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=11 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190911212415/https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-first-store-history-in-sweden-in-1958-2019-9|url-status=live}} The stores spread to other parts of Europe in the 1970s, with the first store outside Scandinavia opening in Switzerland (1973), followed by West Germany (1974), Japan (1974), Australia, Hong Kong (1975), Canada (1976),{{cite news |title=IKEA GRAND OPENING |work=The Chronicle Herald |date=14 July 1976 |pages=24–25}} Singapore, Spain and the Netherlands (1978).{{Cite book|last=Siegfried|first=Patrick|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8gV5DwAAQBAJ&q=ikea+opens+in+Hong+Kong+1975&pg=PA228|title=Business Cases: Internationalisation Strategies in Global Player Companies|date=1 October 2014|publisher=Akademische Verlagsgemeinschaft München|isbn=978-3-96091-353-5|access-date=12 October 2020|archive-date=21 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421205335/https://books.google.com/books?id=8gV5DwAAQBAJ&q=ikea+opens+in+Hong+Kong+1975&pg=PA228|url-status=live}} IKEA further expanded in the 1980s, opening stores in countries such as France (1981), Belgium (1984),{{cite web|url=http://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20150910_01859438|title=Ikea blijft groeien|website=De Standaard|date=10 September 2015 |access-date=7 April 2016|archive-date=19 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419093831/http://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20150910_01859438|url-status=live}} the United States (1985),{{cite news |last=Gruson |first=Lindsey |date=22 March 1986 |title=IKEA Venture in U.S. a Hit |page=35 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/22/business/ikea-venture-in-us-a-hit.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=19 July 2024}} the United Kingdom (1987),{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2002/jun/01/homesandgardens.shopping|title=Democratic by design|last=Finch|first=Julia|date=31 May 2002|newspaper=The Guardian|issn=0261-3077|access-date=7 April 2016|archive-date=2 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200802030932/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2002/jun/01/homesandgardens.shopping|url-status=live}} and Italy (1989).{{cite web|url=http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_MY/about_ikea/the_ikea_way/history/1980.html|title=1980s – IKEA|website=ikea.com|access-date=7 April 2016|archive-date=30 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430171023/https://www.ikea.com/ms/en_MY/about_ikea/the_ikea_way/history/1980.html|url-status=dead}} Germany and the United States, with 55 stores (three in Puerto Rico in latter) each, are the company's biggest markets.

IKEA entered Latin America in February 2010, opening in the Dominican Republic.{{Cite book|last=Publishing|first=Bloomsbury|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EtpxIvlFpTsC&q=The+first+IKEA+store+in+Latin+America+in+Santo+Domingo%2C+Dominican+Republic&pg=PT3004|title=Business: The Ultimate Resource|date=6 June 2011|publisher=A&C Black|isbn=978-1-4081-5646-9|access-date=15 November 2020|archive-date=21 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421205446/https://books.google.com/books?id=EtpxIvlFpTsC&q=The+first+IKEA+store+in+Latin+America+in+Santo+Domingo%2C+Dominican+Republic&pg=PT3004|url-status=live}} As for the region's largest markets, on 8 April 2021, a store was opened in Mexico City.

In August 2018, IKEA opened its first store in India, in Hyderabad.{{cite news |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/ikea-opens-its-first-india-store-tomorrow-heres-what-it-offers/articleshow/65319086.cms?from=mdr |title=IKEA is now open for business in India: Here's what it offers |work=The Economic Times |date=10 August 2018 |access-date=30 December 2020 |archive-date=21 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421205336/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/ikea-opens-its-first-india-store-tomorrow-heres-what-it-offers/articleshow/65319086.cms?from=mdr |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=https://www.ikea.com/in/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/ikea-retail-india-moves-the-opening-date-to-9th-of-august-2018-pub3e70ca2c |title=IKEA Retail India moves the opening date to 9th of August, 2018 |publisher=IKEA |access-date=30 December 2020 |archive-date=26 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126060153/https://www.ikea.com/in/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/ikea-retail-india-moves-the-opening-date-to-9th-of-august-2018-pub3e70ca2c |url-status=live }} There are now stores in Bengaluru and Mumbai.{{Cite web |title=IKEA Stores - Furniture & Home Furnishing Store |url=https://www.ikea.com/in/en/stores/ |access-date=2023-04-26 |website=ikea.com}}

File:Bay Area City Pasay 09.jpg, Metro Manila, Philippines]]

In November 2021, IKEA opened its largest store in the world, measuring {{convert|65000|sqm|sqft}},{{Cite news |url=https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/multimedia/slideshow/11/25/21/look-ikea-opens-worlds-largest-outlet-in-pasay |title="Ikea Opens World's Largest Outlet in Pasay", ABS-CBN News, November 25 2021 |newspaper=Abs-CBN News |access-date=13 December 2021 |archive-date=13 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211213184419/https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/multimedia/slideshow/11/25/21/look-ikea-opens-worlds-largest-outlet-in-pasay |url-status=live }} in the Philippines at the Mall of Asia Complex in Pasay City.{{cite web|title=World's biggest IKEA store opens in PH on Nov. 25|url=https://www.cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2021/11/12/IKEA-Philippines-physical-store-opening.html|access-date=25 November 2021|website=CNN Philippines|archive-date=25 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125021220/https://www.cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2021/11/12/IKEA-Philippines-physical-store-opening.html|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |last1=Venzon |first1=Cliff |title=Ikea opens first outlet in Philippines – its largest globally |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Retail/Ikea-opens-first-outlet-in-Philippines-its-largest-globally |website=Nikkei Asia |access-date=25 November 2021|date=25 November 2021 |archive-date=25 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125060431/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Retail/Ikea-opens-first-outlet-in-Philippines-its-largest-globally |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Fenol |first1=Jessica |title=IKEA Pasay City opens to public on Nov. 25 with 'no booking, no shopping' policy |url=https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/11/25/21/ikea-in-ph-opens-to-public-with-no-booking-no-shopping-policy |website=ABS-CBN News |access-date=25 November 2021|date=25 November 2021 |archive-date=7 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220307210038/https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/11/25/21/ikea-in-ph-opens-to-public-with-no-booking-no-shopping-policy |url-status=live }}

In March 2022, IKEA announced the closing of all 17 stores in Russia, resulting from the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Because of the ongoing war and unimproved situation in Russia, IKEA said on 15 June that it would sell factories, close offices and reduce its workforce.{{Cite news |last=Ringstrom |first=Anna |date=15 June 2022 |title=IKEA puts Russian factories up for sale, plans job cuts|work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/ikea-further-scale-down-operations-russia-2022-06-15/ |access-date=16 June 2022 |archive-date=16 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616002258/https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/ikea-further-scale-down-operations-russia-2022-06-15/ |url-status=live }} Later it became known that IKEA does not plan to sell its business, but expected to return to Russia within two years.{{Cite web|url=https://tass.ru/ekonomika/15552677|title=Источник: IKEA не планирует продавать бизнес в России и хочет вернуться в течение двух лет|language=ru|date=24 August 2022|agency=TASS|access-date=27 August 2022|archive-date=27 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827220008/https://tass.ru/ekonomika/15552677|url-status=live}} By October 2022, IKEA laid off about 10,000 Russian employees.{{Cite web|url=https://www.banki.ru/news/lenta/?id=10973782|title=IKEA уволила 10 тыс. сотрудников в России|language=ru|date=13 October 2022|website=banki.ru|access-date=14 October 2022|archive-date=14 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014091743/https://www.banki.ru/news/lenta/?id=10973782|url-status=live}} In September 2023, the {{visible anchor|MEGA}} chain of 14 supermarkets, then owned by Ingka, was bought by the Russian Gazprombank.{{Cite web|url=https://www.rbc.ru/business/28/09/2023/65152bdd9a79472f909286a3|title=Газпромбанк купил торговые центры "Мега" у экс-владельца IKEA в России|date=2023-09-28|website=RBK}}

IKEA was hit hard by COVID-19 because of lockdowns in various countries, like in the UK and Canada.{{cite web|title=Ikea to reopen 19 stores during UK lockdown|website=The Guardian|date=22 May 2020|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/may/22/ikea-reopen-stores-uk-lockdown-furniture-covid-19|access-date=18 June 2022|archive-date=18 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220618151530/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/may/22/ikea-reopen-stores-uk-lockdown-furniture-covid-19|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=IKEA reopens in Ottawa during COVID-19 pandemic|date=26 May 2020|url=https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/ikea-reopens-in-ottawa-during-covid-19-pandemic-1.4955033|access-date=18 June 2022|archive-date=6 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406210005/https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/ikea-reopens-in-ottawa-during-covid-19-pandemic-1.4955033|url-status=live}} Because demand had fallen,{{cite web|title=Ikea to stop printing catalogue after 'successful career' that spanned 70 years|website=The Guardian|date=7 December 2020|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/dec/07/ikea-to-stop-printing-catalogue-after-70-years-as-customers-move-online|access-date=18 June 2022|archive-date=18 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220618151529/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/dec/07/ikea-to-stop-printing-catalogue-after-70-years-as-customers-move-online|url-status=live}} its annual catalogue ceased publication after 70 years in print.{{cite web |last=Valinsky |first=Jordan |date=7 December 2020 |title=Ikea is killing off its catalog after 70 years |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/07/business/ikea-catalog/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220618151507/https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/07/business/ikea-catalog/index.html |archive-date=18 June 2022 |access-date=18 June 2022 |website=CNN Business}} The prices of their products have risen significantly in 2022 because of rising costs and inflation.{{Cite news|title=Ikea is hiking its prices by nearly 10% as the supply chain crisis continues to disrupt its operations|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-hiking-prices-supply-chain-crisis-retail-furniture-2021-12|access-date=3 July 2022|archive-date=3 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703150932/https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-hiking-prices-supply-chain-crisis-retail-furniture-2021-12|url-status=live}} In April 2022, IKEA has shut down one of its stores in Guiyang when sales took a significant hit from the pandemic. Because of strict COVID-19 lockdowns in China, IKEA has closed another store in Shanghai by July 2022.{{Cite web |title=Ikea Closes Shanghai's Yangpu Store as Covid Changes Retail |url=https://www.yicaiglobal.com/news/ikea-closes-shanghai-yangpu-store-as-covid-changes-retail |access-date=2024-08-23 |website=www.yicaiglobal.com |language=en}}

On 10 August 2022, IKEA opened its first store in Chile, the first store in South America. Another store opened in Colombia in September 2023 in Bogotá,{{Cite web |last=S.A.S |first=Editorial La República |title=Abrimos el Ikea más grande de América Latina para recibir a 4.800 clientes cada día |url=https://www.larepublica.co/empresas/abrimos-el-ikea-mas-grande-de-america-latina-para-recibir-4-800-clientes-al-dia-3715077 |access-date=2023-09-29 |website=Diario La República |date=28 September 2023 |language=es}} soon to be followed by a store in Peru.{{cite web | url=https://elpais.com/chile/2022-08-01/ikea-elige-chile-para-su-desembarco-en-sudamerica.html | title=IKEA elige Chile para su desembarco en Sudamérica | date=August 2022 | access-date=10 August 2022 | archive-date=10 August 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810222328/https://elpais.com/chile/2022-08-01/ikea-elige-chile-para-su-desembarco-en-sudamerica.html | url-status=live }}{{cite web | url=https://www.pulzo.com/economia/ikea-colombia-cuando-abrira-su-primera-tienda-centro-comercial-PP1076672 | title=Primera tienda de Ikea en Colombia ya tiene fecha... En famoso centro comercial | date=13 September 2021 | access-date=10 August 2022 | archive-date=14 July 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220714045545/https://www.pulzo.com/economia/ikea-colombia-cuando-abrira-su-primera-tienda-centro-comercial-PP1076672 | url-status=live }}{{cite web |author=IKEA Franchising |url=https://about.ikea.com/en/newsroom/2022/08/09/ikea-opens-new-store-in-santiago-chile |title=IKEA opens new store in Santiago Chile |publisher=About.ikea.com |access-date=11 August 2022 |archive-date=10 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810235231/https://about.ikea.com/en/newsroom/2022/08/09/ikea-opens-new-store-in-santiago-chile |url-status=live }}

{{Main|List of countries with IKEA stores}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=200px|

• 1958, {{flag|Sweden}}
• 1963, {{flag|Norway}}
• 1969, {{flag|Denmark}}
• 1973, {{flag|Switzerland}}
• 1974, {{flag|Germany}}, {{flag|Japan}}{{NoteTag|Ceased operations in 1986, re-opened in 2006}}
• 1975, {{flag|Australia}}, {{flag|Hong Kong}}{{NoteTag|Then British Hong Kong}}
• 1976, {{flag|Canada}}
• 1977, {{flag|Austria}}
• 1978, {{flag|Netherlands}}, {{flag|Singapore}}, {{flag|Spain}}
• 1981, {{flag|France}}, {{flag|Iceland}}
• 1983, {{flag|Saudi Arabia}}
• 1984, {{flag|Belgium}}, {{flag|Kuwait}}
• 1985, {{flag|United States}}
• 1987, {{flag|United Kingdom}}
• 1989, {{flag|Italy}}
• 1990, {{flag|Hungary}}, {{flag|Poland}}
• 1991, {{flag|Czech Republic}},{{NoteTag|Then part of Czechoslovakia|name=Czechoslovakia}} {{flag|Serbia}},{{NoteTag|Then part of Yugoslavia}} {{flag|United Arab Emirates}}
• 1992, {{flag|Slovakia}}{{NoteTag|name=Czechoslovakia}}
• 1994, {{flag|Taiwan}}
• 1996, {{flag|Finland}}, {{flag|Malaysia}}
• 1998, {{flag|China}}
• 2000, {{flag|Russia}}{{NoteTag|Ceased operations in 2022{{cite web |last=Chopping |first=Dominic |date=3 March 2022 |title=IKEA Closes All 17 Stores in Russia |url=https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/russia-ukraine-latest-news-2022-03-03/card/ikea-closes-all-17-stores-in-russia-kt9QORVODutcLLSFiTfO |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220401075351/https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/russia-ukraine-latest-news-2022-03-03/card/ikea-closes-all-17-stores-in-russia-kt9QORVODutcLLSFiTfO |archive-date=1 April 2022 |access-date=1 April 2022 |website=The Wall Street Journal |language=en-US}}}}
• 2001, {{flag|Greece}}, {{flag|Israel}}
• 2004, {{flag|Portugal}}
• 2005, {{flag|Turkey}}
• 2007, {{flag|Cyprus}}, {{flag|Romania}}
• 2008, {{flag|Ireland}}
• 2010, {{flag|Dominican Republic}}
• 2011, {{flag|Bulgaria}}, {{flag|Thailand}}
• 2012, {{flag|Macau}}
• 2013, {{flag|Lithuania}}, {{flag|Puerto Rico}}, {{flag|Egypt}}, {{flag|Qatar}}
• 2014, {{flag|Croatia}}, {{flag|Indonesia}}, {{flag|Jordan}}, {{flag|South Korea}}
• 2016, {{flag|Morocco}}
• 2017, {{flag|Serbia}}
• 2018, {{flag|Bahrain}}, {{flag|India}}, {{flag|Latvia}}
• 2019, {{flag|Estonia}}
• 2020, {{flag|Ukraine}}
• 2021, {{flag|Mexico}}, {{flag|Philippines}}, {{flag|Slovenia}}
• 2022, {{flag|Chile}}, {{flag|Oman}}
• 2023, {{flag|Colombia}}

}}

File:IKEA furniture display in HK Homesquare 2018.JPG

File:IKEA Anderlecht self-serve warehouse (DSCF3734).jpg

IKEA stores are typically blue buildings with yellow accents{{cite news|title=The IKEA logo – history and design|url=https://www.ikea.com/ph/en/this-is-ikea/about-us/the-ikea-logo-history-and-design-pub55d85f50|access-date=12 December 2021|website=ikea.com|archive-date=31 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731181736/https://www.ikea.com/ph/en/this-is-ikea/about-us/the-ikea-logo-history-and-design-pub55d85f50|url-status=live}} — Sweden's national colours. They are often designed in a one-way layout, leading customers counter-clockwise along what IKEA calls "the long natural way" designed to encourage the customer to see the store in its entirety (as opposed to a traditional retail store, which allows a customer to go directly to the section where the desired goods and services are displayed). There are often shortcuts to other parts of the showroom.{{cite web |title=The Nudge – How IKEA's Store Layout Design Influences Your Spending – Thoughts on Wayfinding |url=https://wp.nyu.edu/thoughtsonwayfinding/2017/11/19/the-nudge-how-ikeas-store-layout-design-influences-your-spending/ |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111203357/https://wp.nyu.edu/thoughtsonwayfinding/2017/11/19/the-nudge-how-ikeas-store-layout-design-influences-your-spending/ |archive-date=11 November 2020 |access-date=29 October 2019}}

The sequence first involves going through the furniture showrooms making note of selected items. The showroom usually consists of simulated room settings where customers can see the actual furniture in use, e.g.: a living-room with a sofa, a TV set, a bookcase and a dining table, accessorized with plants, cushions, rugs, lamps, plates, glasses and cutlery. Showroom sections are usually displayed in the order of the rooms of a house: living rooms, dining rooms, kitchens, bedrooms, kids' rooms. The customer then collects a shopping cart and proceeds to an open-shelf "Market Hall" warehouse for smaller items. Lastly, the self-service furniture warehouse stores the showroom products in flat pack form for the customer to collect the ones previously noted. Sometimes, they are directed to collect products from an external warehouse on the same site or at a site nearby after purchase. Finally, customers pay for their products at a cash register. Not all furniture is stocked at the store level, such as particular sofa colours needing to be shipped from a warehouse to the customer's home or the store.

File:Ikea, Ottawa, Ontario (29983462651).jpg

Most stores follow the layout of having the showroom upstairs with the marketplace and self-service warehouse downstairs. Some stores are single level, while others have separate warehouses to allow more stock to be kept on-site. Single-level stores are found predominantly in areas where the cost of land would be less than the cost of building a 2-level store. Some stores have dual-level warehouses with machine-controlled silos to allow large quantities of stock to be accessed throughout the selling day.

File:IKEA Damansara Market Hall (As-Is section) 20221125 102122.jpg

Most IKEA stores offer an "as-is" or "bargain corner" (recently rebranded as "re-shop and re-use") area at the end of the warehouse, just before the cash registers. Returned, damaged, and formerly showcased products are displayed here and sold with a significant discount.

In March 2022, IKEA swiftly exited the Russian market, due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine,{{Cite web |title=IKEA takes the next step to scale down in Russia and Belarus - IKEA Global |url=https://www.ikea.com/global/en/newsroom/corporate/ikea-takes-the-next-step-to-scale-down-in-russia-and-belarus-220615/ |access-date=2024-05-05 |website=IKEA}} leading to a surplus of items that were earmarked for the Russian market in IKEA's warehouses. To get rid of these items quickly, IKEA has been reselling these in a number of non-Russian IKEA stores near the bargain corner at a discount.{{Citation |last=Hullian111 |title=English: Stock intended for Russian IKEA being sold at Sheffield IKEA's Circular Hub, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. This stock was withdrawn from sale and exported to the United Kingdom as a result of IKEA's withdrawal from Russia and Belarus due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. |date=2023-09-07 |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IKEA_Sheffield_Russian_Stock_Clearance_09.jpg |access-date=2024-05-05}}

The majority of IKEA stores are located outside of city centres, primarily because of land cost and traffic access. Smaller store formats have been unsuccessfully tested in the past (the "midi" concept in the early 1990s, which was tested in Ottawa and Heerlen with {{convert|9,300|m2|ft2|abbr=on}}, or a "boutique" shop in Manhattan).

File:IKEA shop, West Quay Road - geograph.org.uk - 1497911.jpg, England]]

A new format for a full-size, city centre store was introduced with the opening of the Manchester store, situated in Ashton-under-Lyne in 2006. Another store, in Coventry, opened in December 2007. The store had seven floors and a different flow from other IKEA stores; however, it closed down in 2020 due to the site being deemed unsuitable for future business.{{cite web|last=Layton|first=Josh|date=28 May 2020|title=Ikea breaks silence on future of Coventry site|url=https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/ikea-coventry-closed-store-site-18317333|access-date=4 August 2020|website=CoventryLive|archive-date=29 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200629042442/https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/ikea-coventry-closed-store-site-18317333|url-status=live}} IKEA's Southampton store that opened in February 2009 is also in the city centre and built in an urban style similar to the Coventry store. IKEA built these stores in response to UK government restrictions on large retail establishment outside city centres.{{cite web|url=http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about_ikea/press_room/press_release/national/southampton_opening.html|title=IKEA – press room – press release|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231313/http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about_ikea/press_room/press_release/national/southampton_opening.html|access-date=2 May 2015|archive-date=3 March 2016}}

Japan was another market where IKEA performed badly, exited the market completely and then re-entered with an alternative store design and layout with which it finally found success. IKEA entered the Japanese market in 1974 through a franchise arrangement with a local partner, only to withdraw in failure in 1986. Japan was one of the first markets outside its original core European market. Despite Japan being the then second largest economy in the world, IKEA did not adapt its store layout strategy to the Japanese consumer. Japanese consumers did not have a culture of DIY furniture assembly, and many in the early days had no way to haul flat-packs home to their small apartments. Nor did the store layouts familiar to European customers initially make sense to Japanese consumers, so prior to re-entering the Japanese market in 2006, IKEA management did extensive local market research in more effective store layouts. One area of local adaptation was the room displays common to every IKEA store worldwide. Rather than just replicate a European room layout, the Japan management was careful to set up room displays more closely resembling Japanese apartment rooms, such as one for "a typical Japanese teenage boy who likes baseball and computer games".{{cite news |last1=Wijers-Hasegawa |first1=Yumi |title=Sweden's IKEA back in Japan after 20-year hiatus |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2006/04/25/business/swedens-ikea-back-in-japan-after-20-year-hiatus/ |access-date=14 May 2020 |work=The Japan Times |date=25 April 2006 |archive-date=18 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200618040734/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2006/04/25/business/swedens-ikea-back-in-japan-after-20-year-hiatus/#.Xr4PIS2ZN8c |url-status=live }}

IKEA adapted its store location and services to the 'inner-city' format for expansion in China, unlike other countries where IKEA stores for economic and planning restriction reasons tends to be just outside city centres. In China, planning restrictions are less of an issue due to the lack of cars for much of its customer base. Accordingly, in store design alternatives, IKEA has had to offer store locations and formats closer to public transportation. The store design alternative thinking and strategy in China has been to locate stores to facilitate access for non-car owning customers.{{cite journal |last1=Hultman |first1=Jens |last2=Johansson |first2=Ulf |last3=Wispeler |first3=Aylin |last4=Wolf |first4=Leonie |title=Exploring store format development and its influence on sore image and store clientele- the case of IKEA's development of an inner-city store format |journal=The International Journal of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research |volume=27(3) |issue=2007 |pages=227–240 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316815692 |access-date=11 May 2020}} In some locations in China, IKEA stores can be found not in the usual suburban or near airport locations like other countries, but rather places such as downtown shopping centres with a 'mini-IKEA' store to attract shoppers. One store design alternative trend IKEA has implemented has been 'pop-up' stores along social media platforms in their advertising strategy, for the first-time as a company, to reach new customers demographics while still reinforcing its global brand locally in China.{{cite web |last1=Thibaud |first1=Andre |title=IKEA in China: Big furniture retail adapts to the Chinese market. |url=https://daxueconsulting.com/ikea-in-china/ |website=Daxueconsulting |access-date=14 May 2020 |archive-date=17 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617044111/https://daxueconsulting.com/ikea-in-china/ |url-status=live }}

In Hong Kong, where shop space is limited and costly, IKEA has opened 4 stores, all in multi-storey commercial buildings. They are smaller than other IKEA stores but large by Hong Kong standards. In addition to tailoring store sizes for specific countries, IKEA alters the sizes of products to accommodate cultural differences.{{cite web|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90215773/how-ikea-quietly-tweaks-its-design-around-the-world|title=How Ikea quietly tweaks its design around the world|last=Schwab|first=Katharine|date=10 August 2018|website=Fast Company|access-date=29 October 2019|archive-date=29 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029192321/https://www.fastcompany.com/90215773/how-ikea-quietly-tweaks-its-design-around-the-world|url-status=live}} In 2015, IKEA announced it would attempt smaller store design at locations in Canada. IKEA claimed this new model would allow them to expand quickly into new markets rather than spending years opening a full-size store.{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/ikea-coming-to-kitchener-1.3332494|title=Ikea coming to Kitchener – Kitchener-Waterloo – CBC News|access-date=21 December 2015|archive-date=22 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222205730/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/ikea-coming-to-kitchener-1.3332494|url-status=live}}

File:IKEA Mall Taman Anggrek.jpg

In 2020, IKEA opened at Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, which, at {{cvt|2137|m2|0}}, was one of the smallest IKEA stores to-date.{{cite web|last=Issacs|first=Derek|date=6 September 2020|title=Al Wahda IKEA now has an opening date|url=https://adwonline.ae/ikea-abu-dhabi/|access-date=7 July 2021|website=Abu Dhabi World Online|archive-date=9 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184411/https://adwonline.ae/ikea-abu-dhabi/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|date=18 November 2020|title=The new Ikea store in Al Wahda Mall Abu Dhabi is now open|url=https://whatson.ae/2020/11/ikea-al-wahda-abu-dhabi-now-open/|access-date=7 July 2021|website=What's On|archive-date=9 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709185323/https://whatson.ae/2020/11/ikea-al-wahda-abu-dhabi-now-open/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Inside Ikea Al Wahda Mall: an exclusive look inside Abu Dhabi's latest store|url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/lifestyle/home/inside-ikea-al-wahda-mall-an-exclusive-look-inside-abu-dhabi-s-latest-store-1.1108693|access-date=7 July 2021|website=The National|date=11 November 2020|archive-date=1 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601162030/https://www.thenationalnews.com/lifestyle/home/inside-ikea-al-wahda-mall-an-exclusive-look-inside-abu-dhabi-s-latest-store-1.1108693|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=IKEA OPENS DOORS TO THE SECOND STORE IN ABU DHABI IN AL WAHDA MALL|url=https://www.alfuttaim.com/media_center/ikea-opens-doors-to-the-second-store-in-abu-dhabi-in-al-wahda-mall/|access-date=7 July 2021|website=Al-Futtaim|archive-date=9 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709183705/https://www.alfuttaim.com/media_center/ikea-opens-doors-to-the-second-store-in-abu-dhabi-in-al-wahda-mall/|url-status=live}} The company also opened at 360 Mall in Kuwait and in Harajuku, a trendy part of Tokyo, that same year. The size of the Kuwaiti 360 Mall store was slightly larger than Al Wahda's (despite bringing a similar concept), at {{cvt|3000|m2}}, built as an extension of the mall.{{cite web|title=DISCOVER IKEA 360|url=https://bazaar.town/ikea-360/|access-date=9 September 2021|website=bazaar.town {{!}} The ultimate guide to Kuwait|archive-date=9 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210909025603/https://bazaar.town/ikea-360/|url-status=live}} As for IKEA Harajuku, the {{cvt|2500|m2|0}}, 7-storey store houses the chain's first and only konbini concept.{{cite web |title=First IKEA Convenience Store Opens in Tokyo! Compact IKEA in Harajuku and Shibuya {{!}} LIVE JAPAN travel guide |url=https://livejapan.com/en/article-a0004607/ |access-date=8 July 2022 |website=LIVE JAPAN|archive-date=15 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220515190014/https://livejapan.com/en/article-a0004607/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=IKEA Harajuku – Central Tokyo's First Ever Ikea Store! |url=https://www.fun-japan.jp/en/articles/11600 |access-date=8 July 2022 |website=FUN! JAPAN International|archive-date=8 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708064204/https://www.fun-japan.jp/en/articles/11600 |url-status=live }} In 2021, IKEA opened another one of its smallest stores, located at the JEM Mall in Jurong East, Singapore. Replacing liquidated department store Robinsons, IKEA Jurong is only {{cvt|6500|m2}}, encompassing three levels; it was the first location in Southeast Asia that did not provide the "Market Hall" warehouse in its store.{{cite news|title=6 things to look out for when the new 3-storey IKEA at Jem opens on Apr 29|url=https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/trending/ikea-singapore-jem-jurong-opening-promotions-discounts-14709368|access-date=9 July 2021|website=CNA Lifestyle|archive-date=9 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709185550/https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/trending/ikea-singapore-jem-jurong-opening-promotions-discounts-14709368|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=First look: IKEA Jurong opening on April 29, 2021 with cashless concept|url=https://mothership.sg/2021/04/ikea-jem-first-look/|access-date=9 July 2021|website=mothership.sg|archive-date=9 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709185849/https://mothership.sg/2021/04/ikea-jem-first-look/|url-status=live}} Also during 2021, IKEA opened a small-store-format location on Bali, Indonesia, replacing the liquidated former Giant hypermarket. IKEA Bali is dubbed "Customer Meeting Point", and is the smallest store to open thus far, at {{cvt|1200|m2}}.{{cite web |last=Fimela.com |date=19 November 2021 |title=IKEA Buka di Bali, Jadi Gerai Terkecil dan Artsy di Indonesia |url=https://www.fimela.com/lifestyle/read/4715276/ikea-buka-di-bali-jadi-gerai-terkecil-dan-artsy-di-indonesia |access-date=10 May 2022 |website=fimela.com |language=id |archive-date=6 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406210006/https://www.fimela.com/lifestyle/read/4715276/ikea-buka-di-bali-jadi-gerai-terkecil-dan-artsy-di-indonesia |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Akomodasi UMKM Lokal, IKEA Bali Resmi Dibuka, Visual Toko Gabungkan Budaya Swedia dan Bali |url=https://idea.grid.id/read/093001567/akomodasi-umkm-lokal-ikea-bali-resmi-dibuka-visual-toko-gabungkan-budaya-swedia-dan-bali?page=all |access-date=10 May 2022 |archive-date=6 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406210008/https://idea.grid.id/read/093001567/akomodasi-umkm-lokal-ikea-bali-resmi-dibuka-visual-toko-gabungkan-budaya-swedia-dan-bali?page=all |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Makin Mudah Dijangkau, IKEA Kini Hadir di Bali |url=http://bisnisbali.com/makin-mudah-dijangkau-ikea-kini-hadir-di-bali/ |access-date=10 May 2022 |archive-date=18 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211118093307/http://bisnisbali.com/makin-mudah-dijangkau-ikea-kini-hadir-di-bali/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last=Afriyadi |first=Achmad Dwi |title=Buka Cabang di Bali, IKEA Juga Jualan Produk Lokal |url=https://finance.detik.com/berita-ekonomi-bisnis/d-5823406/buka-cabang-di-bali-ikea-juga-jualan-produk-lokal |access-date=10 May 2022 |website=detikfinance |language=id-ID |archive-date=10 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220510075423/https://finance.detik.com/berita-ekonomi-bisnis/d-5823406/buka-cabang-di-bali-ikea-juga-jualan-produk-lokal |url-status=live }}

In 2022, another smaller store was opened inside Livat Hammersmith, London, at {{cvt|4600|m2}},{{cite web |title=First look: Ikea opens first city centre shopping mall in west London |url=https://www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2022/02/first-look-ikea-opens-first-city-centre-shopping-mall-in-west-london/ |access-date=21 March 2022 |website=retailgazette.co.uk |date=24 February 2022 |archive-date=28 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220228005854/https://www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2022/02/first-look-ikea-opens-first-city-centre-shopping-mall-in-west-london/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |date=24 February 2022 |title=IKEA Are Opening A Brand New Store In Hammersmith This Year |url=https://secretldn.com/ikea-hammersmith-store/ |access-date=21 March 2022 |website=Secret London|archive-date=24 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220124000407/https://secretldn.com/ikea-hammersmith-store/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |date=25 February 2022 |title=Boost for Hammersmith as IKEA opens new store in new-look mall |url=https://www.lbhf.gov.uk/articles/news/2022/02/boost-hammersmith-ikea-opens-new-store-new-look-mall |access-date=21 March 2022 |website=LBHF|archive-date=6 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220306013030/https://www.lbhf.gov.uk/articles/news/2022/02/boost-hammersmith-ikea-opens-new-store-new-look-mall |url-status=live }} followed by a {{cvt|9400|m2}} store inside Mall Taman Anggrek, Jakarta, which was opened on 7 April 2022.{{cite web |date=3 November 2021 |title=Ikea to open first mall store in Indonesia |url=https://insideretail.asia/2021/11/03/ikea-to-open-first-mall-store-in-indonesia/ |access-date=21 March 2022 |website=Inside Retail|archive-date=25 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220625144633/https://insideretail.asia/2021/11/03/ikea-to-open-first-mall-store-in-indonesia/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=IKEA Indonesia Resmi Bangun Konsep Toko Baru di Mall Taman Anggrek |url=https://www.ikea.co.id/in/ruang-berita/berita/umum/detail/ikea-indonesia-resmi-bangun-konsep-toko-baru-di-mall-taman-anggrek |date=28 October 2021 |access-date=21 March 2022 |website=IKEA Indonesia |language=id |archive-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809231623/https://www.ikea.co.id/in/ruang-berita/berita/umum/detail/ikea-indonesia-resmi-bangun-konsep-toko-baru-di-mall-taman-anggrek |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=IKEA Buka Gerai Baru di Mal Taman Anggrek, Hadirkan Konsep City Store Pertama |url=https://kumparan.com/kumparanwoman/ikea-buka-gerai-baru-di-mal-taman-anggrek-hadirkan-konsep-city-store-pertama-1xr11A1KGcy |access-date=11 April 2022 |website=kumparan |language=id-ID |archive-date=10 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220410041539/https://kumparan.com/kumparanwoman/ikea-buka-gerai-baru-di-mal-taman-anggrek-hadirkan-konsep-city-store-pertama-1xr11A1KGcy |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Buka Gerai Baru di Mall Taman Anggrek, Ini Dia Jam Operasional IKEA Cabang Ke-6 – iDEA |url=https://idea.grid.id/read/093226642/buka-gerai-baru-di-mall-taman-anggrek-ini-dia-jam-operasional-ikea-cabang-ke-6 |access-date=11 April 2022 |website=idea.grid.id |language=id |archive-date=6 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406210011/https://idea.grid.id/read/093226642/buka-gerai-baru-di-mall-taman-anggrek-ini-dia-jam-operasional-ikea-cabang-ke-6 |url-status=live }}

File:Assembling an Ikea poäng chair (9055631329).jpg chair]]

Rather than being sold pre-assembled, much of IKEA's furniture is designed to be assembled by the customer. The company claims that this helps reduce costs and use of packaging by not shipping air; the volume of a bookcase, for example, is considerably less if it is shipped unassembled rather than assembled. This is also more practical for European customers using public transport, because flat packs can be more easily carried.

IKEA contends that it has been a pioneering force in sustainable approaches to mass consumer culture.{{Cite web |url=https://www.ikea.com/ms/en_CA/pdf/sustainability_report/group_approach_sustainability_fy11.pdf |title=The IKEA Group approach to sustainability (2011) |access-date=25 July 2017 |archive-date=19 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819181549/https://www.ikea.com/ca/en/files/pdf/d6/90/d6905036/ikea_group_sustainability_report_fy17.pdf |url-status=dead }} Kamprad calls this "democratic design", meaning that the company applies an integrated approach to manufacturing and design (see also environmental design). In response to the explosion of human population and material expectations in the 20th and 21st centuries, the company implements economies of scale, capturing material streams and creating manufacturing processes that hold costs and resource use down, such as the extensive use of medium-density fibreboard ("MDF"), also called "particle board".

Notable items of IKEA furniture include the Poäng armchair, the Billy bookcase and the Klippan sofa, all of which have sold by the tens of millions since the late 1970s and early 1980s.{{Cite news|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/most-popular-ikea-products-2016-9/#2-the-poaeng-chair-sells-15-million-units-a-year-11|title=The 12 most popular IKEA products of all time|work=Business Insider|access-date=2 October 2017|archive-date=4 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604121815/https://www.businessinsider.com/most-popular-ikea-products-2016-9#2-the-poaeng-chair-sells-15-million-units-a-year-11|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/12/t-magazine/design/ikea-forever.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/12/t-magazine/design/ikea-forever.html |archive-date=3 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Ikea Forever|last=Fortini|first=Amanda|date=12 September 2016|work=The New York Times|access-date=2 October 2017|issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}

The IKEA and LEGO brands teamed up to create a range of simple storage solutions for children and adults.{{cite web|date=1 September 2020|title=IKEA x LEGO Collaboration Releases Storage Boxes That Are Also Toys|url=https://mymodernmet.com/ikea-lego-storage-boxes-bygglek/|access-date=26 November 2020|website=My Modern Met|archive-date=27 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927170519/https://mymodernmet.com/ikea-lego-storage-boxes-bygglek/|url-status=live}}

IKEA products are identified by one-word (occasionally, two-word) names, predominantly in the Swedish language (or otherwise Scandinavian in origin). With few exceptions, most product names are based on a special naming system developed by the company.{{cite web|title=The IKEA Dictionary|url=http://lar5.com/ikea/index.html|author=Lars Petrus|access-date=27 December 2013|archive-date=12 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112024552/https://lar5.com/ikea/index.html|url-status=live}} The company founder Kamprad was dyslexic, and found that naming the furniture with proper names and words, rather than a long product code, made the products easier to identify and remember.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2008/feb/04/shopping.retail|work=The Guardian|location=London|title=Do you speak Ikea?|first=Jon|last=Henley|date=4 February 2008|access-date=5 May 2010|archive-date=12 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112041019/http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2008/feb/04/shopping.retail|url-status=live}} Products are usually named after locations in Scandinavian countries, using names of places in Sweden for sofas and coffee tables, Denmark for textiles, and Norway for beds. Lamps get their names from seas and lakes, while outdoor furniture is named after islands.{{Cite book |last=Bjarnestam |first=Eva Atle |title=IKEA. Design och identitet |publisher=drängahuset Handelsbolag |year=2009 |isbn=9789151937403 |pages=209 |language=Swedish}}

A number of IKEA's products bearing Swedish names have (or have had) pronunciations that are humorous to some and offensive to others (but no less "lost-in-translation"), by not only English-speakers but speakers of many different languages. At times, this product-identification has resulted in certain names being changed, or withdrawn completely from certain markets. More often than not, this confusion is simply a result of the Swedish language not being executed correctly, let alone understood, by the reader; nonetheless, this has resulted in potentially "naughty"—or even gravely offensive—connotations, depending on the area in question. Notable examples (for English-speakers) include a since-discontinued (2013) computer desk called jerker (referring to "the jerks" or "jerks"), a foliar plant spray called fukta ("moisten"), a workbench called fartfull ("speedy", "quick"),[https://web.archive.org/web/20060208123705/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_200408/ai_n12556896 'Fartfull' workbench, 'Jerker' desk: Is Ikea hiding a grin?] Chicago Sun-Times, 17 August 2004 and a table called lyckhem (pronounced roughly as "look-em"), meaning "bliss" or a "happy home".

Due to several products being named after real places, some locales have ended-up sharing names with objects considered generally unpleasant, such as a toilet brush being named after the lake of Bolmen, or a rubbish bin named after the Norwegian village of Tofte. In November 2021, VisitSweden.com launched a jocular campaign named "Discover the Originals", which invited tourists to visit the physical locations which have received such unfortunate associations with IKEA products.{{cite web |author=Leslie Katz |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/sweden-reclaims-ikea-product-names-bolmen-more-than-a-toilet-brush/ |title=Sweden reclaims Ikea product names: 'Bolmen, more than a toilet brush' |publisher=CNET |date=10 December 2021 |access-date=25 February 2022 |archive-date=20 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220220134613/https://www.cnet.com/news/sweden-reclaims-ikea-product-names-bolmen-more-than-a-toilet-brush/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://kottke.org/21/12/lake-toiletbrush-and-the-curse-of-ikeas-product-names |title=Lake Toiletbrush and the Curse of Ikea's Product Names |publisher=Kottke.org |date=20 December 2021 |access-date=25 February 2022 |archive-date=23 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123101621/https://kottke.org/21/12/lake-toiletbrush-and-the-curse-of-ikeas-product-names |url-status=live }}

File:Ikea Planning Studio (48064098962).jpg, United States, in 2019, which closed in January 2022{{cite news |title=IKEA U.S. to relocate Upper East Side planning studio |url=https://www.ikea.com/us/en/newsroom/corporate-news/ikea-u-s-to-relocate-its-upper-east-side-planning-studio-that-will-close-january-2022-pub59241b37 |access-date=4 May 2022 |website=ikea.com|archive-date=4 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220504193803/https://www.ikea.com/us/en/newsroom/corporate-news/ikea-u-s-to-relocate-its-upper-east-side-planning-studio-that-will-close-january-2022-pub59241b37 |url-status=live }}]]

In March 2021, IKEA launched IKEA Studio in partnership with Apple Inc., an app enabling customers to design full-scale rooms with IKEA furniture using augmented reality on an iPhone.{{Cite news|title=IKEA's fancy new AR app lets you design entire rooms|magazine=Wired UK|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/ikea-studio-ar-app|access-date=8 September 2021|issn=1357-0978|archive-date=8 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210908011357/https://www.wired.co.uk/article/ikea-studio-ar-app|url-status=live}}

In 2016, IKEA started a move into the smart home business. The IKEA TRÅDFRI smart lighting kit was one of the first ranges signalling this change.{{cite web|url=https://www.cnet.com/uk/products/ikea-tradfri-smart-lighting-kit/review/|title=Ikea Tradfri Smart Lighting Kit|publisher=CNET|access-date=15 May 2017|archive-date=20 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170520214804/https://www.cnet.com/uk/products/ikea-tradfri-smart-lighting-kit/review/|url-status=live}} IKEA has also started a partnership with Philips Hue.{{cite web|url=https://www.smarthomegeeks.co.uk/news/ikea-tradfri-hue-work-together-now/|title=Ikea Trådfri & Hue work together NOW!|website=Smart Home Geeks|date=11 August 2017|access-date=11 August 2017|archive-date=23 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170823205406/https://www.smarthomegeeks.co.uk/news/ikea-tradfri-hue-work-together-now/|url-status=live}} The wireless charging furniture, integrating wireless Qi charging into everyday furniture, is another strategy for the smart home business.{{cite web|url=http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/departments/wireless_charging/|title=Wireless Charging – IKEA|website=ikea.com|access-date=17 October 2017|archive-date=18 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018061301/http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/departments/wireless_charging/|url-status=live}}

A collaboration to build Sonos smart speaker technology into furniture sold by IKEA was announced in December 2017.{{Cite news|url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/06/sonos-and-ikea-are-collaborating-on-sound-products-for-the-home/|title=Sonos and Ikea are collaborating on sound products for the home|last=Tepper|first=Fitz|date=6 December 2017|work=TechCrunch|access-date=8 December 2017|publisher=Oath Inc.|archive-date=8 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208115221/https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/06/sonos-and-ikea-are-collaborating-on-sound-products-for-the-home/|url-status=live}} The first products resulting from the collaboration launched in August 2019.{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2017/digital/news/sonos-ikea-partnership-1202632104/|title=Sonos Teams Up With Ikea for Smart Home Audio|last=Roettgers|first=Janko|date=6 December 2017|work=Variety|access-date=8 December 2017|archive-date=8 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208121207/http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/sonos-ikea-partnership-1202632104/|url-status=live}}

Under the product name SYMFONISK, IKEA and Sonos have made two distinct wireless speakers that integrate with existing Sonos households or can be used to start with the Sonos-ecosystem, one that's also a lamp and another that's a more traditional looking bookshelf speaker. Both products as well as accessories for the purpose of mounting the bookshelf speakers have gone on sale worldwide on 1 August.{{cite web|url=https://newsroom.inter.ikea.com/news/symfonisk-is-here---ikea-and-sonos-to-rethink-the-way-we-use-sound-and-light/s/f2df1cbb-0a15-4887-838e-82bd011a7fa8|title=Symfonisk is here, Ikea and Sonos rethink the way we use sound and light|website=ikea.com|access-date=5 August 2019|archive-date=5 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805133530/https://newsroom.inter.ikea.com/news/symfonisk-is-here---ikea-and-sonos-to-rethink-the-way-we-use-sound-and-light/s/f2df1cbb-0a15-4887-838e-82bd011a7fa8|url-status=live}}

From the start, IKEA SYMFONISK can only be controlled from the Sonos app, but IKEA added support for the speakers in their own Home Smart app to be paired with scenes that control both the lights, air purifiers, smart plugs and smart blinds together with the speakers.

IKEA has also expanded its product base to include flat-pack houses and apartments, in an effort to cut prices involved in a first-time buyer's home. The IKEA product, named BoKlok was launched in Sweden in 1996 in a joint venture with Skanska. Now working in the Nordic countries and in the UK, sites confirmed in England include London, Ashton-under-Lyne, Leeds, Gateshead, Warrington, Bristol and Liverpool.{{cite news|url=http://shopping.guardian.co.uk/household/story/0,1587,1403793,00.html|title=Buying a house? Pick up a flatpack at Ikea|date=2 February 2005|work=The Guardian|location=London|first=Martin|last=Wainwright|access-date=5 May 2010|archive-date=17 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517044601/http://shopping.guardian.co.uk/household/story/0,1587,1403793,00.html|url-status=live}}

At the end of September 2013, the company announced that solar panel packages, so-called "residential kits", for houses will be sold at 17 UK stores by mid-2014. The decision followed a successful pilot project at the Lakeside IKEA store, whereby one photovoltaic system was sold almost every day. The solar CIGS panels are manufactured by Solibro, a German-based subsidiary of the Chinese company Hanergy.{{cite news|title=Ikea to sell solar panels in UK stores |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/30/ikea-sell-solar-panels-uk-stores |access-date=1 October 2013 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=30 September 2013 |agency=Reuters |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130930192635/http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/30/ikea-sell-solar-panels-uk-stores |archive-date=30 September 2013 }}{{cite web | url=https://news.yahoo.com/latest-appliance-ikea-solar-power-panels-060800233.html | title=The latest appliance from IKEA: Solar power panels | publisher=The Week Newspaper | date=1 October 2013 | access-date=1 October 2013 | author=Lobello, Carmel | archive-date=4 October 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004180350/http://news.yahoo.com/latest-appliance-ikea-solar-power-panels-060800233.html | url-status=live }} By the end of 2014, IKEA began to sell Solibro's solar residential kits in the Netherlands and in Switzerland.{{cite web |quote=Residential kit for IKEA in the Netherlands and Switzerland |url=http://solibro-solar.com/en/company/about-us/ |title=The Solibro CIGS Technology |work=Solibro GmbH |access-date=20 January 2017 |archive-date=1 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401185551/http://solibro-solar.com/en/company/about-us |url-status=dead }} In November 2015, IKEA ended its contract with Hanergy and in April 2016 started working with Solarcentury to sell solar panels in the United Kingdom.{{cite web|last1=Stoker|first1=Liam|title=Solarcentury lands IKEA 'Solar Shops' contract|url=http://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/solarcentury_lands_ikea_solar_shops_contract_5239|website=solarpowerportal.co.uk|date=25 April 2016 |access-date=3 May 2016|ref=Solarcentury|archive-date=29 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429160651/http://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/solarcentury_lands_ikea_solar_shops_contract_5239|url-status=live}} The deal would allow customers to be able to order panels online and at three stores before being expanded to all United Kingdom stores by the end of summer.{{Cite news|url=http://www.newsweek.com/ikea-starts-selling-solar-panels-uk-stores-452058|title=Ikea to start selling solar panels in U.K. stores|date=25 April 2016|newspaper=Newsweek|access-date=14 November 2016|archive-date=14 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161114165158/http://www.newsweek.com/ikea-starts-selling-solar-panels-uk-stores-452058|url-status=live}}

In April 2019, the company announced that it would begin test marketing a new concept, renting furniture to customers. One of the motivating factors was that inexpensive IKEA products were viewed as "disposable" and often ended up being scrapped after a few years of use. This was at a time when especially younger buyers said they wanted to minimize their impact on the environment. The company understood this view. In an interview, Jesper Brodin, the chief executive of Ingka Group (the largest franchisee of IKEA stores), commented that "climate change and unsustainable consumption are among the biggest challenges we face in society".{{cite news|date=6 April 2019|title=IKEA to test furniture rental in 30 markets as a greener alternative to flat-pack fare|newspaper=Financial Post|url=https://business.financialpost.com/news/retail-marketing/ikea-to-test-furniture-rental-in-30-markets|access-date=9 April 2019|quote=IKEA to test furniture rental in 30 markets as a greener alternative to flat-pack fare, Young consumers say they want to minimize their impact on the environment|archive-date=8 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408205542/https://business.financialpost.com/news/retail-marketing/ikea-to-test-furniture-rental-in-30-markets|url-status=live}} The other strategic objectives of the plan were to be more affordable and more convenient. The company said it would test the rental concept in all 30 markets by 2020, expecting it to increase the number of times a piece of furniture would be used before recycling.{{cite web|title=IKEA to test furniture rental in 30 countries|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-sustainability/ikea-to-test-furniture-rental-in-30-countries-idUSKCN1RF0WY|date=6 April 2019|work=Reuters|access-date=9 April 2019|quote=KAARST, Germany (Reuters), IKEA wants to roll out furniture rental to all its main markets in a bid to appeal to its increasingly environmentally conscious and transient customers.|archive-date=8 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408091838/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-sustainability/ikea-to-test-furniture-rental-in-30-countries-idUSKCN1RF0WY|url-status=live}}

File:HK KTD 九龍灣 Kln Bay MegaBox mall shop 宜家傢俬 IKEA furniture in April 2022 Px3 31.jpg

File:IKEA Food market in MegaBox 2017.jpg

File:IKEA Restaurant in Coquitlam.jpg, British Columbia, Canada]]

File:IKEA-Sendai- Japan03.JPG

File:IKEA_food_court_in_Santiago.jpg, Chile]]

The first IKEA store opened in 1958 with a small cafe that transitioned into a full-blown restaurant in 1960 that,{{cite web |title=Restaurants that make customers happy |url=https://ikeamuseum.com/en/digital/the-story-of-ikea/the-worlds-biggest-restaurant/ |access-date=20 June 2022 |website=IKEA Museum|archive-date=1 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701163117/https://ikeamuseum.com/en/digital/the-story-of-ikea/the-worlds-biggest-restaurant/ |url-status=live }} until 2011, sold branded Swedish prepared specialist foods, such as meatballs, packages of gravy, lingonberry jam, various biscuits and crackers, and salmon and fish roe spread. The new label has a variety of items including chocolates, meatballs, jams, pancakes, salmon and various drinks.{{Cite news|url=http://www.columbusmonthly.com/lifestyle/20171114/short-order-ikea-restaurant|title=Short Order: Ikea Restaurant|last=Trask|first=Bailey|work=Columbus Monthly|access-date=1 December 2017|archive-date=8 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808222803/https://www.columbusmonthly.com/lifestyle/20171114/short-order-ikea-restaurant|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/news/2017/11/30/ikea-store-takes-shape-in-oak-creek-heres-how-it.html|title=Ikea store takes shape in Oak Creek: Here's how it looks from the air—Slideshow – Milwaukee – Milwaukee Business Journal|website=The Business Journals|access-date=1 December 2017|archive-date=12 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200212233422/https://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/news/2017/11/30/ikea-store-takes-shape-in-oak-creek-heres-how-it.html|url-status=live}}

Although the cafes primarily serve Swedish food, the menu varies based on the culture, food and location of each store.{{Cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/what-no-meatballs-how-ikea-caters-to-different-global-tastes/articleshow/65331281.cms|title=What, no meatballs? How Ikea caters to different global tastes|date=9 August 2018|work=The Economic Times|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=5 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190105133058/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/what-no-meatballs-how-ikea-caters-to-different-global-tastes/articleshow/65331281.cms|url-status=live}} With restaurants in 38 countries, the menu often incorporates local dishes, including shawarma in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, poutine in Canada, macarons in France, and gelato in Italy.{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-food-court-menus-around-the-world-pictures-2019-6|title=IKEA food courts have different menus across the world. Take a look at 11 cuisines you can get outside the US.|last=Ciment|first=Shoshy|website=Business Insider|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=20 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190620130312/https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-food-court-menus-around-the-world-pictures-2019-6|url-status=live}} In Indonesia, the Swedish meatballs recipe is changed to accommodate the country's halal requirements.{{cite web|url=https://www.india.com/business/ikea-opens-first-store-today-know-what-is-unique-about-its-furniture-food-and-more-3213426/|title=IKEA Opens First Showroom in India Today|date=9 August 2018|website=India News, Breaking News, Entertainment News {{!}} India.com|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=10 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180810181038/https://www.india.com/business/ikea-opens-first-store-today-know-what-is-unique-about-its-furniture-food-and-more-3213426/|url-status=live}} Stores in Israel sell kosher food under rabbinical supervision.{{cite web|url=http://www.badatz.biz/biz/%D7%90%D7%99%D7%A7%D7%90%D7%94-%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%9F-%D7%9C%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%95%D7%9F/|title=Badatz Beit Yosef Restaurant Listing|publisher=Badatz.com|access-date=19 September 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416054415/http://www.badatz.biz/biz/%D7%90%D7%99%D7%A7%D7%90%D7%94-%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%9F-%D7%9C%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%95%D7%9F/|archive-date=16 April 2015}} The kosher restaurants are separated into dairy and meat areas.{{cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/courting-ultra-orthodox-consumers-ikea-turns-to-kosher-inspiration/|title=Courting ultra-Orthodox consumers, IKEA turns to kosher inspiration|last=Immergluck|first=Ira Tolchin|website=The Times of Israel|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=1 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191201145536/https://www.timesofisrael.com/courting-ultra-orthodox-consumers-ikea-turns-to-kosher-inspiration/|url-status=live}}

In many locations, the IKEA restaurants open daily before the rest of the store and serve breakfast.{{Cite web |title=Do IKEA stores serve breakfast? - IKEA United States |url=https://www.ikea.com/us/en/customer-service/knowledge/articles/7e076088-28g9-4948-b425-0b9e2689fdd0.html |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=www.ikea.com}}{{Cite news |last=Valverde |first=Miriam |date=April 28, 2016 |title=Ikea redesigns restaurants as shoppers clamor for food |url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2016/04/28/ikea-redesigns-restaurants-as-shoppers-clamor-for-food/ |access-date=July 3, 2024 |work=South Florida Sun Sentinel}} All food products are based on Swedish recipes and traditions. Food accounted for 5% of IKEA's sales by 2019.{{cite news |title=IKEA to start serving salad grown at its stores |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-sustainability/ikea-to-start-serving-salad-grown-at-its-stores-idUSKCN1RG0YE |access-date=4 April 2019 |work=Reuters |date=4 April 2019 |archive-date=8 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108025359/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-sustainability/ikea-to-start-serving-salad-grown-at-its-stores-idUSKCN1RG0YE |url-status=live }}

IKEA sells plant-based meatballs made from potatoes, apples, pea protein, and oats in all of its stores.{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/27/21155742/ikea-meat-free-plant-ball-meatballs-europe-launch-august-2020|title=Ikea's new meatless meatballs are coming to Europe in August|date=27 February 2020|access-date=27 February 2020|archive-date=27 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200227133103/https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/27/21155742/ikea-meat-free-plant-ball-meatballs-europe-launch-august-2020|url-status=live}} According to United States journalist Avery Yale Kamila, IKEA began testing its plant-based meatballs in 2014, then launched the plant-based meatballs in 2015 and began testing vegan hot dogs in 2018.{{cite web |date=9 May 2018 |title=Customers want vegan food, and national restaurants are responding |url=https://www.pressherald.com/2018/05/09/customers-want-vegan-food-and-national-restaurants-are-responding/ |access-date=15 June 2022 |website=Press Herald |archive-date=15 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615181207/https://www.pressherald.com/2018/05/09/customers-want-vegan-food-and-national-restaurants-are-responding/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last=Kamila |first=Avery Yale |date=25 June 2014 |title=Chipotle, IKEA mainstreaming meatless meals |url=https://www.pressherald.com/2014/06/25/chipotle-ikea-mainstreaming-meatless-meals/ |access-date=15 June 2022 |website=Press Herald |archive-date=15 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615181215/https://www.pressherald.com/2014/06/25/chipotle-ikea-mainstreaming-meatless-meals/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last=Edwards |first=Jess |date=19 February 2018 |title=Vegetarian hot dogs might be coming to Ikea |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/worklife/a18226925/ikea-vegetarian-hot-dog/ |access-date=15 June 2022 |website=Cosmopolitan|archive-date=15 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615181558/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/worklife/a18226925/ikea-vegetarian-hot-dog/ |url-status=live }} In 2019, journalist James Hansen reported in Eater London that IKEA would only sell vegetarian food at Christmas time.{{cite web |last=Hansen |first=James |date=25 October 2019 |title=Ikea Shelves Meat for Christmas |url=https://london.eater.com/2019/10/25/20930582/ikea-food-menu-christmas-2019-vegan |access-date=15 June 2022 |website=Eater London|archive-date=26 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220626011504/https://london.eater.com/2019/10/25/20930582/ikea-food-menu-christmas-2019-vegan |url-status=live }}

Every store has a children's play area, named Småland (Swedish for small lands; it is also the Swedish province of Småland where founder Kamprad was born). Parents drop off their children at a gate to the playground, and pick them up after they arrive at another entrance. In some stores, parents are given free pagers by the on-site staff, which the staff can use to summon parents whose children need them earlier than expected; in others, staff summon parents through announcements over the in-store public address system or by calling them on their mobile phones.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/11/garden/11ikea.html|title=A Cheap Date, With Child Care by Ikea|last=Higgins|first=Michelle|date=10 June 2009|work=The New York Times|access-date=19 December 2017|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=23 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211123024203/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/11/garden/11ikea.html|url-status=live}} The largest Småland play area is located at the IKEA store in Navi Mumbai, India.{{cite news |last1=Dec 18 |first1=B. B. Nayak / TNN / Updated |title=IKEA in Navi Mumbai: IKEA opens store in Navi Mumbai {{!}} Navi Mumbai News – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/navi-mumbai/ikea-opens-store-in-navi-mumbai/articleshow/79792536.cms |website=The Times of India |access-date=27 December 2020|archive-date=18 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218080857/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/navi-mumbai/ikea-opens-store-in-navi-mumbai/articleshow/79792536.cms |url-status=live }} Some of these were closed down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In August 2024, Ikea announced it would be trialing an on-line marketplace where customers can connect to buy and sell pre-owned items made by Ikea.

The marketplace, called Ikea Preowned, would run from August until December 2024 and be centred on the cities of Oslo, Norway and Madrid, Spain.{{Cite web |last=PYMNTS |date=2024-08-26 |title=Ikea Tests Appetite for Secondhand Furniture With 'Preowned' Marketplace |url=https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2024/ikea-tests-appetite-for-secondhand-furniture-with-preowned-marketplace/ |access-date=2024-08-26 |website=PYMNTS.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |title=Ikea launches secondhand marketplace to compete with eBay |url=https://www.ft.com/content/4b18236f-f2f0-43eb-bb65-5f8d2f30a734}}

File:MEGA3.jpg in Russia]]

Until 28 September 2023, IKEA owned & operated the MEGA Family Shopping Centre chain in Russia. Its operations have since been sold to Gazprombank.{{Cite news|url= https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/gazprombank-buys-ikea-stores-owner-071615719.html?guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAD7OA8ionya8va3x9_HrdAI4nvkJzpUS6OgiBsiboSzAIsg5PW0Z_xyNnaIZu9OAQgvEzp9wZCcWgv3K_tv5TuJNQM21-Sjvynl0pkYxg4qBwbPcGgA_ezVjyy2B69Q9jLmZxepxVfgAzH6gjFH2BZk87HE5Lky631dgTmAMp0O1|title=Gazprombank buys Russia MEGA shopping centres from IKEA affiliated business

|work=yahoo! Finance|access-date=21 October 2023}}

On 8 August 2008, IKEA UK launched a virtual mobile phone network called IKEA Family Mobile, which ran on T-Mobile.{{cite web|last1=Milmo|first1=Dan|title=Ikea launches ready-made mobile phone service|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2008/aug/04/telecoms.ikea|website=The Guardian|access-date=11 August 2014|date=4 August 2014|archive-date=19 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140319001042/http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2008/aug/04/telecoms.ikea|url-status=live}} At launch it was the cheapest pay-as-you-go network in the UK.{{cite web|title=T-Mobile signs Ikea MVNO|url=http://www.mobilenewscwp.co.uk:80/News/95182/tmobile_signs_ikea_mvno.html|access-date=12 August 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080808103148/http://www.mobilenewscwp.co.uk/News/95182/tmobile_signs_ikea_mvno.html|archive-date=8 August 2008|date=4 August 2008|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|title=T-Mobile " the network behind IKEA Family Mobile, the UK's newest mobile service|url=http://www.opt-development.co.uk/press-office/release.php?id=224|access-date=12 August 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100129023642/http://www.opt-development.co.uk/press-office/release.php?id=224|archive-date=29 January 2010|date=3 August 2008}} In June 2015 the network announced that its services would cease to operate from 31 August 2015.{{cite web|title=Coms Mobile / Your Family Mobile closure on 31st August 2015|url=http://www.yourfamilymobile.co.uk/images/Coms%20Mobile%20closure%20FAQs.pdf|access-date=19 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150922043136/http://www.yourfamilymobile.co.uk/images/Coms%20Mobile%20closure%20FAQs.pdf|archive-date=22 September 2015|url-status=usurped}}

{{As of|2012}}, IKEA has a joint venture with TCL to provide Uppleva integrated HDTV and entertainment system products.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/17/us-ikea-electronics-idUSBRE83G04R20120417|title=IKEA moves into consumer electronics with China venture|first=Anna |last=Ringstrom|work=Reuters|date=17 April 2012|access-date=1 July 2017|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924163510/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/17/us-ikea-electronics-idUSBRE83G04R20120417|url-status=dead}}{{cite news|url=http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-04/D9U6OBFG0.htm |title=IKEA to sell TVs integrated in its furniture |first=Louise |last=Nordstom |date=17 April 2012 |agency=Associated Press |work=Bloomberg Businessweek |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120427111745/http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-04/D9U6OBFG0.htm |archive-date=27 April 2012 }}

In mid-August 2012, the company announced that it would establish a chain of 100 economy hotels in Europe but, unlike its few existing hotels in Scandinavia, they would not carry the IKEA name, nor would they use IKEA furniture and furnishings – they would be operated by an unnamed international group of hoteliers.{{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/ikea-launch-chain-budget-hotels-europe-article-1.1137519|title=IKEA to launch chain of budget hotels in Europe|newspaper=Daily News|location=New York |date=16 August 2012|access-date=28 January 2013|archive-date=26 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130526040733/http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/ikea-launch-chain-budget-hotels-europe-article-1.1137519|url-status=live}} As of 30 April 2018, however, the company owned only a single hotel, the IKEA Hotell in Älmhult, Sweden.

It was previously planning to open another one, in New Haven, Connecticut, United States, after converting the historic Pirelli Building. The company received approval for the concept from the city's planning commission in mid-November 2018; the building was to include 165 rooms and the property would offer 129 dedicated parking spaces. Research in April 2019 provided no indication that the hotel had been completed as of that time.{{cite news|date=30 April 2018|title=Is IKEA about to open its first hotel outside of Sweden?|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/north-america/united-states/articles/could-a-new-ikea-hotel-be-opening-in-the-united-states/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/north-america/united-states/articles/could-a-new-ikea-hotel-be-opening-in-the-united-states/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=9 April 2019|quote=Is IKEA about to open its first hotel outside of Sweden?}}{{cbignore}}{{cite news|date=15 November 2018|title=Pirelli Hotel Plan Survives Surprise Attack|newspaper=Independent|url=https://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/pirelli_hotel/|access-date=9 April 2019|quote=The approved plans call for a 165-room hotel, 129 dedicated parking spaces, 200 square feet of bicycle storage in the bottom of the IKEA sign, stormwater management, and landscaping improvements, a reconfiguration of IKEA's existing 1,241-space surface lot, and the repair and cleaning up of the building's facade. The proposal does not call for any changes to be made to the building's exterior.|archive-date=18 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518090438/https://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/pirelli_hotel/|url-status=live}} The building was then sold to Connecticut architect and developer Becker + Becker for $1.2{{nbsp}}million.{{cite web |title=360 State Builder Buys IKEA Hotel Site |url=https://www.newhavenindependent.org/article/ikea_hotel_site |access-date=10 March 2022 |website=New Haven Independent |date=6 January 2020|archive-date=10 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310023942/https://www.newhavenindependent.org/article/ikea_hotel_site |url-status=live }} Opening in 2022 under Hotel Marcel, it is managed by Charlestowne Hotels and became part of Hilton's Tapestry Collection.{{cite web |title=How an Iconic Brutalist Building Became One of the Most Sustainable Hotels in the U.S. |url=https://www.buildings.com/articles/43365/hotel-marcel-historic-net-zero |access-date=10 March 2022 |website=Buildings |date=16 February 2022|archive-date=13 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313193316/https://www.buildings.com/articles/43365/hotel-marcel-historic-net-zero |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Hotel Marcel opening: Look inside the country's first net-zero energy hotel |url=https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2022/03/08/hotel-marcel-opening/ |access-date=10 March 2022 |website=The Boston Globe|archive-date=9 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309205639/https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2022/03/08/hotel-marcel-opening/ |url-status=live }}

From 2016 to 2018, IKEA sold a commuter belt-driven bicycle, the Sladda.{{cite web |last=Small |first=Andrew |date=5 June 2018 |title=Rest In Peace, Ikea Bike |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-06-05/why-ikea-recalled-its-sladda-bikes |access-date=20 July 2022 |website=bloomberg.com |archive-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220808233048/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-06-05/why-ikea-recalled-its-sladda-bikes |url-status=live }}

In September 2017, IKEA announced they would be acquiring the UD company TaskRabbit. The deal, completed later that year, has TaskRabbit operating as an independent company.{{cite news |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2017/09/28/assembly-required-ikea-buy-services-site-taskrabbit/0hEMLoF7bxV42i6gzpjqvO/story.html |title=No assembly required? Ikea to buy services site TaskRabbit |work=The Boston Globe |agency=Associated Press |date=28 September 2017 |access-date=28 September 2017 |archive-date=28 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170928205819/http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2017/09/28/assembly-required-ikea-buy-services-site-taskrabbit/0hEMLoF7bxV42i6gzpjqvO/story.html |url-status=live }}

In March 2020, IKEA announced that it had partnered with Pizza Hut Hong Kong on a joint venture. IKEA launched a new side table called SÄVA. The table, designed to resemble a pizza saver, would be boxed in packaging resembling a pizza box, and the building instructions included a suggestion to order a Swedish meatball pizza from Pizza Hut, which would contain the same meatballs served in IKEA restaurants.{{cite news|url=https://www.housebeautiful.com/about/a31401101/ikea-pizza-hut-table/|title=IKEA and Pizza Hut Collabed to Make a Table Inspired by the Stands in Pizza Boxes|last=Allen|first=Kelly|date=11 March 2020|work=House Beautiful|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-date=17 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317192117/https://www.housebeautiful.com/about/a31401101/ikea-pizza-hut-table/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/18/ikea-pizza-hut-team-create-three-legged-table-looks-just-like-saver-pizza-box-12415886/|title=Ikea and Pizza Hut team up to create three-legged table that looks just like the 'saver' in your pizza box and meatball pizza|last=Lindsay|first=Jessica|date=18 March 2020|work=Metro|access-date=23 July 2013|archive-date=19 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319183725/https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/18/ikea-pizza-hut-team-create-three-legged-table-looks-just-like-saver-pizza-box-12415886/|url-status=live}}

In April 2020, IKEA acquired AI imaging startup Geomagical Labs.{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashyapkompella/2020/04/13/ikea-acquires-geomagical-labs-top-takeaways-for-retailers-and-startups/|title=IKEA Acquires Geomagical Labs: Top Takeaways For Retailers And Startups|last=Kompella|first=Kashyap|website=Forbes|access-date=17 April 2020|archive-date=17 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417120312/https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashyapkompella/2020/04/13/ikea-acquires-geomagical-labs-top-takeaways-for-retailers-and-startups/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/02/ikea-acquires-ai-imaging-startup-geomagical-labs-to-supercharge-room-visualisations/|title=Ikea acquires AI imaging startup Geomagical Labs to supercharge room visualisations|website=TechCrunch|date=2 April 2020|access-date=17 April 2020|archive-date=21 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421205338/https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/02/ikea-acquires-ai-imaging-startup-geomagical-labs-to-supercharge-room-visualisations/|url-status=live}}

In July 2020, IKEA opened a concept store in the Harajuku district of Tokyo, Japan, where it launched its first ever apparel line.{{cite news|url=https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/ikea-is-releasing-its-first-ever-apparel-line-in-harajuku-072120|title=Ikea is releasing its first-ever apparel line in Harajuku|last=Steen|first=Emma|date=21 July 2020|work=Time Out|access-date=23 July 2020|archive-date=22 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200722103837/https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/ikea-is-releasing-its-first-ever-apparel-line-in-harajuku-072120|url-status=live}}

Ingka Centres, IKEA's malls division, announced in December 2021 that it would open two malls, anchored by IKEA stores, in Gurugram and Noida in India at a cost of around {{INRConvert|9000|c}}. Both malls are expected to open by 2025.{{Cite news|last1=Jamkhandikar|first1=Shilpa|last2=Monnappa|first2=Chandini|date=8 December 2021|title=IKEA malls business to invest around $1.2 bln in India – executive|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/ikea-malls-business-invest-around-928-mln-india-top-executive-says-2021-12-08/|access-date=17 January 2022|archive-date=17 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117224017/https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/ikea-malls-business-invest-around-928-mln-india-top-executive-says-2021-12-08/|url-status=live}}

In 2016, IKEA Canada partnered with the Setsuné Indigenous Fashion Incubator, co-founded by Sage Paul, to design and produce the collection ÅTERSTÄLLA, which means to restore, heal, or redecorate, and it was made entirely from salvaged Ikea textiles, reflecting the traditional Indigenous value to "use everything".{{Cite web |last=Braun |first=Jennifer |date=6 June 2017 |title=Ikea Canada partners with Indigenous Fashion Incubator |url=https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/ikea-canada-partners-with-indigenous-fashion-incubator,835653.html |website=FASHION Network}}

{{Main|Stichting INGKA Foundation|Ikano|Ingvar Kamprad}}

{{IKEA ownership chart}}

IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit and for-profit corporations. The corporate structure is divided into two main parts: operations and franchising.

INGKA Holding B.V., based in the Netherlands, owns the Ingka Group, which takes care of the centres, retails, customer fulfillment, and all the other services related to IKEA products. The IKEA brand is owned and managed by Inter IKEA Systems B.V., based in the Netherlands, owned by Inter IKEA Holding B.V. Inter IKEA Holding is also in charge of design, manufacturing and supply of IKEA products.

Inter IKEA Systems is owned by Inter IKEA Holding BV, a company registered in the Netherlands, formerly registered in Luxembourg (under the name Inter IKEA Holding SA). Inter IKEA Holding, in turn, is owned by the Interogo Foundation, based in Liechtenstein.{{Cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6919139|title=Flat-pack accounting|date=11 May 2006|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=10 June 2009|archive-date=24 May 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120524/http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6919139|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.inter.ikea.com/en/about-us/Our-owner/|title=Our owner|date=1 September 2016|website=Inter IKEA Group|access-date=6 January 2017|archive-date=11 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311192646/http://www.inter.ikea.com/en/about-us/Our-owner/|url-status=live}} In 2016, the INGKA Holding sold its design, manufacturing and logistics subsidiaries to Inter IKEA Holding.{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-restructuring-idUSKCN0XC0IA|title=IKEA finalizing its biggest overhaul in decades|date=15 April 2016|work=Reuters|access-date=6 January 2016|archive-date=18 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618105037/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-restructuring-idUSKCN0XC0IA|url-status=live}}

In June 2013, Ingvar Kamprad resigned from the board of Inter IKEA Holding SA and his youngest son Mathias Kamprad replaced Per Ludvigsson as the chairman of the holding company. Following his decision to step down, the 87-year-old founder explained, "I see this as a good time for me to leave the board of Inter IKEA Group. By that we are also taking another step in the generation shift that has been ongoing for some years." After the 2016 company restructure, Inter IKEA Holding SA no longer exists, having reincorporated in the Netherlands. Mathias Kamprad became a board member of the Inter IKEA Group and the Interogo Foundation.{{cite web|url=http://www.di.se/nyheter/ingvar-kamprads-son-bort-fran-maktposition/|title=Ingvar Kamprads son bort från maktposition|date=17 October 2016|website=Dagens Industri|access-date=6 January 2017|archive-date=5 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170105083600/http://www.di.se/nyheter/ingvar-kamprads-son-bort-fran-maktposition/|url-status=live}} Mathias and his two older brothers, who also have leadership roles at IKEA, work on the corporation's overall vision and long-term strategy.{{cite news|title=IKEA's new chairman likes PAX wardrobes, and that's about all we know|url=http://qz.com/91159/ikeas-new-chairman-likes-pax-wardrobes-and-thats-about-all-we-know/|access-date=6 June 2013|newspaper=Quartz|date=5 June 2013|author=Gina Chon|archive-date=2 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150702144203/http://qz.com/91159/ikeas-new-chairman-likes-pax-wardrobes-and-thats-about-all-we-know/|url-status=live}}

File:Ingvar Kamprad Haparanda June 2010.jpg, founder of IKEA]]

Along with helping IKEA make a non-taxable profit, IKEA's complicated corporate structure allowed Kamprad to maintain tight control over the operations of INGKA Holding, and thus the operation of most IKEA stores. The INGKA Foundation's five-person executive committee was chaired by Kamprad. It appoints a board of INGKA Holding, approves any changes to INGKA Holding's bylaws, and has the right to preempt new share issues. If a member of the executive committee quits or dies, the other four members appoint their replacement.

In Kamprad's absence, the foundation's bylaws include specific provisions requiring it to continue operating the INGKA Holding group and specifying that shares can be sold only to another foundation with the same objectives as the INGKA Foundation.

File:IKEA Delft 2.JPG – the head office of Inter IKEA Systems B.V. which owns the IKEA trademark and concept]]

The net profit of IKEA Group (which does not include Inter IKEA systems) in fiscal year 2009 (after paying franchise fees to Inter IKEA systems) was €2.538{{nbsp}}billion on sales of €21.846{{nbsp}}billion. Because INGKA Holding is owned by the non-profit INGKA Foundation, none of this profit is taxed. The foundation's nonprofit status also means that the Kamprad family cannot reap these profits directly, but the Kamprads do collect a portion of IKEA sales profits through the franchising relationship between INGKA Holding and Inter IKEA Systems.

As a franchisee, the Ingka Group pays 3% of royalties to Inter IKEA Systems. Inter IKEA Systems collected €631{{nbsp}}million of franchise fees in 2004 but reported pre-tax profits of only €225{{nbsp}}million in 2004. One of the major pre-tax expenses that Inter IKEA systems reported was €590{{nbsp}}million of "other operating charges". IKEA has refused to explain these charges, but Inter IKEA Systems appears to make large payments to I.I. Holding, another Luxembourg-registered group that, according to The Economist, "is almost certain to be controlled by the Kamprad family". I.I. Holding made a profit of €328{{nbsp}}million in 2004.

In 2004, the Inter IKEA group of companies and I.I. Holding reported combined profits of €553m and paid €19m in taxes, or approximately 3.5 percent.

IKEA has avoided millions of euros in taxes{{Cite web |url=https://europeangreens.eu/news/ikea-report-ikea-avoided-1-billion-taxes-using-european-taxation-system-its-own-benefit |title=IKEA report: IKEA avoided €1 billion in taxes by using the European taxation system to its own benefit {{pipe}} European Greens |access-date=30 October 2023 |archive-date=30 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030124933/https://europeangreens.eu/news/ikea-report-ikea-avoided-1-billion-taxes-using-european-taxation-system-its-own-benefit |url-status=dead }} performing some intricate mechanisms{{Cite news |last=Boffey |first=Daniel |date=2017-12-18 |title=EU investigates Ikea after Dutch deals reduce tax bill by €1bn|work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/dec/18/eu-probes-ikea-after-dutch-deals-reduce-tax-bill-by-1bn |access-date=2023-11-15 |issn=0261-3077}} and it was noted by the EU back in 2017. The main countries where they operated their business using tax loopholes were the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium.

Public Eye, a non-profit organisation in Switzerland that promotes corporate responsibility, has formally criticised IKEA for its tax avoidance strategies. In 2007, the organisation nominated IKEA for one of its Public Eye "awards", which highlight corporate irresponsibility.{{cite web|url=http://www.evb.ch/en/p11676.html |publisher=Erklärung von Bern |title=Berne Declaration Public Eye Awards, 2007 Nominations |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140409212238/http://www.evb.ch/en/p11676.html |archive-date=9 April 2014 }}

In February 2016, the Greens / EFA group in the European Parliament issued a report entitled [https://www.greens-efa.eu/legacy/fileadmin/dam/Documents/Studies/Taxation/Report_IKEA_tax_avoidance_Feb2016.pdf IKEA: Flat Pack Tax Avoidance] on the tax planning strategies of IKEA and their possible use to avoid tax in several European countries. The report was sent to Pierre Moscovici, the European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs, and Margrethe Vestager, the European Commissioner for Competition, expressing the hope that it would be of use to them in their respective roles "to advance the fight for tax justice in Europe".{{cite web | url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/241801/gross-profit-of-ikea-worldwide/ | title=Gross profit of IKEA worldwide 2009–2018 {{pipe}} Statista | access-date=14 December 2017 | archive-date=15 December 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215110656/https://www.statista.com/statistics/241801/gross-profit-of-ikea-worldwide/ | url-status=live }}

Although IKEA originated in Sweden, their household products and furniture products are manufactured in many different countries, in order to achieve cost efficiency. For most of its products, the final assembly is performed by the end-user (consumer).

Swedwood, an IKEA subsidiary, produces all of the company's wood-based products, with the largest Swedwood factory located in Southern Poland. According to the subsidiary, over 16,000 employees across 50 sites in 10 countries manufacture the 100{{nbsp}}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.

Distribution centre efficiency and flexibility have been one of IKEA's ongoing priorities and thus it has implemented automated, robotic warehouse systems and warehouse management systems (WMS). Such systems facilitate a merger of the traditional retail and mail order sales channels into an omni-channel fulfillment model.{{cite web |title= State-of-the-art distribution center for IKEA |url= https://www.ssi-schaefer.com/en-at/company/news/state-of-the-art-distribution-center-for-ikea-462802 |website= ssi-schaefer.com |date= 15 June 2018 |access-date= 14 February 2021 |archive-date= 16 April 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210416112400/https://www.ssi-schaefer.com/en-at/company/news/state-of-the-art-distribution-center-for-ikea-462802 |url-status= dead }} In 2020, Ikea was noted by Supply Chain magazine as having one of the most automated warehouse systems in the world.{{cite web |title= The Top 10 Automated Warehouses |url= https://www.supplychaindigital.com/warehousing/top-10-automated-warehouses |website= Supplychaindigital.com |last= Pierce |first= Freddie |date= 7 March 2020 |access-date= 14 February 2021 |archive-date= 25 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210125181126/https://www.supplychaindigital.com/warehousing/top-10-automated-warehouses |url-status= live }}

In the 1980s under the rule of the Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, Romania's secret police, the Securitate, received six-figure payments from IKEA.{{Cite news |last=Rosca |first=Matei |date=2014-07-04 |title=Ikea funds went to Romanian secret police in communist era|work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/04/ikea-funds-romania-secret-police-communist-era |access-date=2023-02-14 |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=20 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020060152/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/04/ikea-funds-romania-secret-police-communist-era |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=2014-07-07 |title=Ikea paid millions to Romania's communist secret police in 1980s |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/1548113/ikea-paid-millions-romanias-communist-secret-police-1980s |access-date=2023-02-14 |website=South China Morning Post|archive-date=14 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214053346/https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/1548113/ikea-paid-millions-romanias-communist-secret-police-1980s |url-status=live }} According to declassified files at the National College for Studying the Securitate Archives, IKEA agreed to overcharge for products made in Romania and some of the overpayment funds were deposited into an account controlled by the Securitate.{{Cite web |title=Programmable Search Engine |url=https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=011669139259916526426:ikoewsmuaba&ie=windows-1250&q=ikea&sa=C%C4%83utare&siteurl=www.cnsas.ro/&ref=&ss=303j38345j4#gsc.tab=0&gsc.q=ikea&gsc.page=1 |access-date=2023-02-14 |archive-date=14 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214053338/https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=011669139259916526426:ikoewsmuaba&ie=windows-1250&q=ikea&sa=C%C4%83utare&siteurl=www.cnsas.ro/&ref=&ss=303j38345j4#gsc.tab=0&gsc.q=ikea&gsc.page=1 |url-status=live }}

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, IKEA has been facing major supply chain issues since 2021, which could extend into 2022. Jon Abrahamsson, the chief executive of Inter IKEA has stated that the main issue is shipping products from China, as a "quarter" of IKEA products are made there.{{cite web|url=https://globalnews.ca/news/8265916/ikea-supply-chain-shortages-2022/|title=IKEA expects supply chain disruptions into 2022 as it fights 'perfect storm'|date=14 October 2021|access-date=6 February 2022|last=Ringstrom|first=Anna|archive-date=6 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220206164829/https://globalnews.ca/news/8265916/ikea-supply-chain-shortages-2022/|url-status=live}} A variety of reasons led to supply shortages, including consumption shocks. In addition, factories were unable to produce raw materials and workers even after they began receiving orders.{{Cite journal |last1=Panwar |first1=Rajat |last2=Pinkse |first2=Jonatan |last3=De Marchi |first3=Valentina |date=February 2022 |title=The Future of Global Supply Chains in a Post-COVID-19 World |journal=California Management Review|volume=64 |issue=2 |pages=5–23 |doi=10.1177/00081256211073355 |s2cid=246777087 |issn=0008-1256 |doi-access=free |hdl=11577/3419577 |hdl-access=free }}{{Cite news |date=15 October 2021 |title=Ikea warns stock shortages to last into next year |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-58912045 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220614072121/https://www.bbc.com/news/business-58912045 |archive-date=14 June 2022 |access-date=14 June 2022 |work=BBC News}}

During the 1980s, IKEA kept its costs down by using production facilities in East Germany. A portion of the workforce at those factories consisted of political prisoners. This fact, revealed in a report by Ernst & Young commissioned by the company, resulted from the intermingling of criminals and political dissidents in the state-owned production facilities IKEA contracted with, a practice which was generally known in West Germany. IKEA was one of a number of companies, including West German firms, which benefited from this practice. The investigation resulted from attempts by former political prisoners to obtain compensation. In November 2012, IKEA admitted being aware at the time of the possibility of use of forced labour and failing to exercise sufficient control to identify and avoid it. A summary of the Ernst & Young report was released on 16 November 2012.{{cite news|title=Ikea Admits Forced Labor Was Used in 1980s|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/17/business/global/ikea-to-report-on-allegations-of-using-forced-labor-during-cold-war.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/17/business/global/ikea-to-report-on-allegations-of-using-forced-labor-during-cold-war.html |archive-date=3 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=17 November 2012|newspaper=The New York Times|date=16 November 2012|author=Nicholas Kulish|author2=Julia Werdigier}}{{cbignore}}

In 2018, Ikea was accused of union busting when employees sought to organize, using such tactics as captive audience meetings.{{cite web |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-accused-of-anti-union-tactics-2018-10 |first=Áine |last=Cain |date=3 October 2018 |access-date=8 July 2022 |title=Unions are accusing IKEA of cracking down on Massachusetts workers in a series of 'captive-audience' meetings featuring fear-mongering PowerPoints |website=Business Insider |archive-date=8 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708140505/https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-accused-of-anti-union-tactics-2018-10 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-unions-idUSKCN1M721G |first=Anna |last=Ringstrom |title=Unions accuse IKEA of undermining workers' rights in three markets |work=Reuters |access-date=8 July 2022 |date=27 September 2018 |archive-date=8 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708140504/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ikea-unions-idUSKCN1M721G |url-status=live }}

IKEA was named one of the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers in 2004 and 2005 by Working Mothers magazine.{{cite web|date=21 September 2004|title=IKEA Named to Working Mother Magazine's '100 Best Companies for Working Mothers' for Second Consecutive Year|url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20040921005210/en/IKEA-Named-Working-Mother-Magazines-100-Companies|access-date=11 June 2020|website=businesswire.com|archive-date=15 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815030512/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20040921005210/en/IKEA-Named-Working-Mother-Magazines-100-Companies|url-status=live}} It ranked 80 in Fortune's 200 Best Companies to Work For in 2006 and in October 2008, IKEA Canada LP was named one of "Canada's Top 100 Employers" by Mediacorp Canada Inc.{{cite web|url=http://www.eluta.ca/top-employer-ikea-canada|title=Reasons for Selection, 2009 Canada's Top 100 Employers Competition|access-date=14 January 2009|archive-date=22 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130122010834/http://www.eluta.ca/top-employer-ikea-canada|url-status=live}}

File:Yellow IKEA shopping bag (2019) 03.jpg

File:HK CWB Park Lane basement shop IKEA lighting LED lamps notice Dec-2015 DSC.JPG

After initial environmental issues like the highly publicized formaldehyde scandals in the early 1980s and 1992,{{cite web |title=Ikea and formaldehyde |url=http://www.peterre.info/ikea/formaldehyde/ |publisher=unknown (2003 to 6 February 2004) |access-date=2 July 2013 |archive-date=21 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121042415/http://www.peterre.info/ikea/formaldehyde/ |url-status=usurped }}{{cite web|title=Formaldehyde and other VOC's |url=http://www.ikeafans.com/forums/articles/5107-formaldehyde-other-vocs.html |publisher=ikeafans.com | date=February 1998 |access-date=2 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130625033018/http://www.ikeafans.com/forums/articles/5107-formaldehyde-other-vocs.html |archive-date=25 June 2013 }}{{cite news | title=Eco Etiquette: Should I Freak Out About Formaldehyde In Baby Furniture? | url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/eco-etiquette-should-i-fr_b_814096 | first=Jennifer | last=Grayson | work=HuffPost | date=26 January 2011 | access-date=27 April 2020 | archive-date=22 September 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922215154/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/eco-etiquette-should-i-fr_b_814096 | url-status=live }} IKEA took a proactive stance on environmental issues and tried to prevent future incidents through a variety of measures.See Bartlett, Dessain, Sjöman (2006) – Ikea's Global Sourcing Challenge: Indian Rugs and Child Labour (A) in Harvard Business School In 1990, IKEA invited Karl-Henrik Robèrt, founder of the Natural Step, to address its board of directors. Robert's system conditions for sustainability provided a strategic approach to improving the company's environmental performance. In 1990, IKEA adopted the Natural Step framework as the basis for its environmental plan.Owens, Heidi (1998) [http://www.ortns.org/documents/Ikea.pdf Ikea: A Natural Step Case Study]. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051125152924/http://www.ortns.org/documents/Ikea.pdf |date=25 November 2005 }} Oregon Natural Step Network. Retrieved 6 April 2008. This led to the development of an Environmental Action Plan, which was adopted in 1992. The plan focused on structural change, allowing IKEA to "maximize the impact of resources invested and reduce the energy necessary to address isolated issues". The environmental measures taken include the following:

1. Replacing polyvinylchloride (PVC) in wallpapers, home textiles, shower curtains, lampshades and furniture—PVC has been eliminated from packaging and is being phased out in electric cables;
2. Minimizing the use of formaldehyde in its products, including textiles;
3. Eliminating acid-curing lacquers;
4. Producing a model of chair (OGLA) made from 100% post-consumer plastic waste;
5. Introducing a series of air-inflatable furniture products into the product line. Such products reduce the use of raw materials for framing and stuffing and reduce transportation weight and volume to about 15% of that of conventional furniture;
6. Reducing the use of chromium for metal surface treatment;
7. Limiting the use of substances such as cadmium, lead, PCB, PCP, and Azo pigments;
8. Using wood from responsibly managed forests that replant and maintain biological diversity;
9. Using only recyclable materials for flat packaging and "pure" (non-mixed) materials for packaging to assist in recycling.
10. Introducing rental bicycles with trailers for customers in Denmark.{{cite web|url=http://usingbicycles.blogspot.com/2008/07/ikea-bikes-no-theyre-not-made-of.html|title=IKEA Bikes (no, they're not made of plywood)|work=Using Bicycles|author=Sherwood Stranieri|date=17 July 2008|access-date=27 July 2008|archive-date=9 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109032431/http://usingbicycles.blogspot.com/2008/07/ikea-bikes-no-theyre-not-made-of.html|url-status=live}}

In 2000, IKEA {{Cite web |last=admin |date=2023-11-21 |title=Unveiling the Elegance: Transform Your Space with IKEA Bedroom Furniture Sets |url=https://decormastery.com/ikea-bedroom-furniture/ |access-date=2023-11-21 |website=Decor Mastery}} introduced its code of conduct for suppliers that covers social, safety, and environmental questions. Today IKEA has around 60 auditors who perform hundreds of supplier audits every year. The main purpose of these audits is to make sure that the IKEA suppliers follow the law in each country where they are based. Most IKEA suppliers fulfil the law today with exceptions for some special issues, one being excessive working hours in Asia, in countries such as China and India.{{citation needed|date=May 2016}}

{{As of|2018|March}}, IKEA has signed on with 25 other companies to participate in the British Retail Consortium's Better Retail Better World initiative, which challenges companies to meet objectives outlined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.{{cite web|url=https://brc.org.uk/making-a-difference/priorities/better-retail-better-world/#WHO'S%20TAKING%20ACTION|title=Better Retail, Better World|website=brc.org.uk|access-date=25 July 2018|archive-date=25 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025192353/https://brc.org.uk/making-a-difference/priorities/better-retail-better-world#WHO'S%20TAKING%20ACTION|url-status=live}}

To make IKEA a more sustainable company, a product life cycle was created. For the idea stage, products should be flat-packed so that more items can be shipped at once; products should also be easier to dismantle and recycle. Raw materials are used, and since wood and cotton are two of IKEA's most important manufacturing products, the company works with environmentally friendly forests and cotton, whereby the excessive use of chemicals and water is avoided.{{cite web |url=http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/pdf/reports-downloads/sustainability-strategy-people-and-planet-positive.pdf |title=IKEA Group Sustainability Strategy 2016 |access-date=23 February 2017 |archive-date=26 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190226181231/https://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/pdf/reports-downloads/sustainability-strategy-people-and-planet-positive.pdf |url-status=dead }}

IKEA stores recycle waste and many run on renewable energy. All employees are trained in environmental and social responsibility, while public transit is one of the priorities when the location of stores is considered. Also, the coffee and chocolate served at IKEA stores is UTZ Certified.{{cite web|url=https://www.utz.org/better-business-hub/strengthening-your-reputation/from-store-to-farm-traceability-in-action-at-ikea/|title=From store to farm – traceability in action at IKEA – UTZ.org|website=UTZ.org|access-date=19 May 2016|archive-date=17 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200817184547/https://utz.org/better-business-hub/strengthening-your-reputation/from-store-to-farm-traceability-in-action-at-ikea/|url-status=live}}

The last stage of the life cycle is the end of life. Most IKEA stores recycle light bulbs and drained batteries, and the company is also exploring the recycling of sofas and other home furnishing products.

In August 2008, IKEA announced that it had created IKEA GreenTech, a €50{{nbsp}}million venture capital fund. Located in Lund (a university town in Sweden), it will invest in 8–10 companies in the coming five years with focus on solar panels, alternative light sources, product materials, energy efficiency and water saving and purification. The aim is to commercialise green technologies for sale in IKEA stores within 3–4 years.{{cite web |date=7 August 2008 |title=Ikea Sets its Sights on the Sun |url=http://futurethinktank.com/2008/08/07/ikea-sets-its-sights-on-the-sun/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090710105817/http://futurethinktank.com/2008/08/07/ikea-sets-its-sights-on-the-sun/ |archive-date=10 July 2009 |access-date=10 June 2009 |publisher=Futurethinktank.com (futurethink's innovation weblog)}}{{cite web |date=10 August 2008 |title=IKEA GreenTech |url=http://www.greenvc.org/ikea_greentech/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090430194505/http://www.greenvc.org/ikea_greentech/ |archive-date=30 April 2009 |access-date=10 June 2009 |publisher=Green VC}}

On 17 February 2011, IKEA announced its plans to develop a wind farm in Dalarna County, Sweden, furthering its goal of using only renewable energy to fuel its operations.{{cite web|url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20032930-54.html|title=IKEA building its own personal wind farm|publisher=CNET|date=17 February 2011|access-date=17 February 2011|archive-date=21 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221214447/http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20032930-54.html|url-status=dead}} {{as of|2012|June}},{{update inline|date=October 2017}} 17 United States IKEA stores are powered by solar panels, with 22 additional installations in progress,{{cite web|title=Ikea U.S. Solar Plans near 89% with Two More Installations Proposed; Distribution Centers in Perryville, MD and Westampton, NJ Will Be among Country's Largest Projects |url=http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ikea-us-solar-plans-near-89-with-two-more-installations-proposed-distribution-centers-in-perryville-md-and-westampton-nj-will-be-among-countrys-largest-projects-2012-06-12 |publisher=Business Wire |date=12 June 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140712230851/http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ikea-us-solar-plans-near-89-with-two-more-installations-proposed-distribution-centers-in-perryville-md-and-westampton-nj-will-be-among-countrys-largest-projects-2012-06-12 |archive-date=12 July 2014 }} and IKEA owns the 165 MW Cameron Wind farm in Cameron County on the South Texas coast{{cite news |url=http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/article/Steady-breezes-at-the-right-time-boost-Gulf-Coast-11363533.php |title=Sea change: Gulf Coast wind farms become vital to Texas energy mix |first=Ryan Maye |last=Handy |newspaper=Houston Chronicle |date=27 July 2017 |access-date=31 July 2017 |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109023412/https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/article/Steady-breezes-at-the-right-time-boost-Gulf-Coast-11363533.php |url-status=live }} and a 42 MW coastal wind farm in Finland.{{cite web|url=http://www.vindkraftsnyheter.se/20171006/5375/ajos-vindpark-overlamnad-till-kund|title=Ajos vindpark överlämnad till kund|work=vindkraftsnyheter.se|date=6 October 2017|access-date=11 October 2017|archive-date=16 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181016125949/http://www.vindkraftsnyheter.se/20171006/5375/ajos-vindpark-overlamnad-till-kund|url-status=dead}}

In September 2019, IKEA announced that they would be investing $2.8{{nbsp}}billion in renewable energy infrastructure. The company is targeting making their entire supply chain climate positive by 2030.{{cite web|url=https://qz.com/1712654/ikeas-retail-arm-is-investing-2-8-billion-in-renewable-energy/|title=IKEA is investing $2.8{{nbsp}}billion in renewable energy infrastructure|last=Quito|first=Anne|website=Quartz|date=21 September 2019|access-date=7 October 2019|archive-date=31 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031050154/https://qz.com/1712654/ikeas-retail-arm-is-investing-2-8-billion-in-renewable-energy/|url-status=live}}

The group is responsible for approximately 1% of world commercial-product wood consumption, making it the largest individual user of wood in the world.[http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/pdf/sustainability_report/sustainability_report_2013.pdf IKEA Group Sustainability Report FY13] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180107050510/http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/pdf/sustainability_report/sustainability_report_2013.pdf |date=7 January 2018 }}, Page 23. Retrieved 13 February 2014 IKEA claims to use 99.5% recycled or FSC-certified wood.{{cite web |title=IKEA Sustainability Report FY21 |url=https://gbl-sc9u2-prd-cdn.azureedge.net/-/media/aboutikea/newsroom/publications/documents/ikea-sustainability-report-fy21.pdf?rev=6d09c40ec452441091b10d9212718192&hash=1A1FDACCB00D35EE9D64428D85CA6C4E |access-date=6 August 2022 |website=ikea.com |archive-date=23 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523084830/https://gbl-sc9u2-prd-cdn.azureedge.net/-/media/aboutikea/newsroom/publications/documents/ikea-sustainability-report-fy21.pdf?rev=6d09c40ec452441091b10d9212718192&hash=1A1FDACCB00D35EE9D64428D85CA6C4E |url-status=live }} However, IKEA has been shown to be involved in unsustainable and most likely illegal logging of old-growth and protected forests in multiple Eastern European countries in recent years.{{cite magazine| title=Ikea's Race for the Last of Europe's Old-Growth Forest| url=https://newrepublic.com/article/165245/ikea-romania-europe-old-growth-forest| magazine=The New Republic| date=16 February 2022| publication-date=6 February 2022| access-date=22 July 2022| last1=Sammon| first1=Alexander| last2=Renault| first2=Marion| last3=Renault| first3=Marion| last4=Cummins| first4=Eleanor| last5=Cummins| first5=Eleanor| last6=Lee| first6=Kevin| last7=Lee| first7=Kevin| last8=Shapiro| first8=Walter| last9=Shapiro| first9=Walter| last10=Beyerstein| first10=Lindsay| last11=Beyerstein| first11=Lindsay| last12=Haas| first12=Lidija| last13=Haas| first13=Lidija| archive-date=22 July 2022| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220722121507/https://newrepublic.com/article/165245/ikea-romania-europe-old-growth-forest| url-status=live}}{{cite web |author=Harvey |first=Fiona |author-link=Fiona Harvey |date=23 June 2020 |title=Timber from unsustainable logging allegedly being sold in EU as ethical |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/23/timber-unsustainable-logging-allegedly-sold-eu-ethical |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815112329/http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/23/timber-unsustainable-logging-allegedly-sold-eu-ethical |archive-date=15 August 2022 |access-date=22 July 2022 |website=The Guardian |publication-date=16 July 2021}}{{cite news| title=Ikea sold children's furniture 'made of illegally-logged Russian wood'| author=Jane Dalton| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/ikea-children-furniture-illegal-wood-b1884276.html| website=The Independent| publication-date=23 June 2020| access-date=22 July 2022| archive-date=7 July 2022| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707060435/http://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/ikea-children-furniture-illegal-wood-b1884276.html| url-status=live}}

IKEA is the world's largest buyer and retailer of wood. In 2015, IKEA claimed to use 1% of the world's supply of timber.{{cite web |date=26 February 2015 |title=Making Solid Wood |url=http://www.ikea.com/us/en/about_ikea/newsitem/022615_pr_making-solid-wood |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150419042236/http://www.ikea.com/us/en/about_ikea/newsitem/022615_pr_making-solid-wood |archive-date=19 April 2015 |website=ikea.com}}

According to IKEA's 2021 Sustainability Report, 99.5% of all wood that the company uses is either recycled or meets the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council. IKEA states that "[a]ll wood used for IKEA products must meet our critical requirements that ensure it's not (e.g.) sourced from illegally harvested forests [...]". However, despite these claims, IKEA has been involved in unsustainable and most likely illegal logging of wood in multiple Eastern European countries in recent years; see Criticism of IKEA.

IKEA owns about 136,000 acres of forest in the US and about 450,000 acres in Europe.{{cite news |last1=Takahashi |first1=Paul |title=Ikea acquires 42,000 acres of forestland in East Texas |url=https://www.mysanantonio.com/business/retail/article/IKEA-acquires-42-000-acres-of-forestland-in-East-14853600.php |newspaper=Mysa |date=22 November 2019 |access-date=26 November 2019 |archive-date=1 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801190708/https://www.mysanantonio.com/business/retail/article/IKEA-acquires-42-000-acres-of-forestland-in-East-14853600.php |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Ikea bought 11,000 acres of forest in Georgia to protect it from development |author=Alaa Elassar |date=31 January 2021 |website=CNN The Good Stuff |url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/31/us/ikea-forest-georgia-protect-trnd-scn/index.html |access-date=31 January 2021 |archive-date=1 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201185131/https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/31/us/ikea-forest-georgia-protect-trnd-scn/index.html |url-status=live }}

On 14 January 2021, IKEA announced that Ingka Investments had acquired approximately 10,840 acres (4,386 hectares) near the Altamaha River Basin in the U.S. state of Georgia from The Conservation Fund. The acquisition comes with the agreement "to protect the land from fragmentation, restore the longleaf pine forest, and safe-guard the habitat of the gopher tortoise".{{cite news |title=Ingka Investments acquires forestland in United States from The Conservation Fund |url=https://www.ikea.com/us/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/ingka-investments-acquires-forestland-in-united-states-from-the-conservation-fund-pub70656d40 |access-date=2 February 2021 |website=ikea.com |archive-date=31 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210131194127/https://www.ikea.com/us/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/ingka-investments-acquires-forestland-in-united-states-from-the-conservation-fund-pub70656d40 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Ikea bought 11,000 acres of forest in Georgia to protect it from development |url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/31/us/ikea-forest-georgia-protect-trnd-scn/index.html |date=31 January 2021 |last=Elassar |first=Alaa |publisher=CNN |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=1 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201185131/https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/31/us/ikea-forest-georgia-protect-trnd-scn/index.html |url-status=live }}

IKEA is reported to be the largest private landowner in Romania since 2015.

In 2011, the company examined its wood consumption and noticed that almost half of its global pine and spruce consumption was for the fabrication of pallets. The company consequently started a transition to the use of paper pallets and the "Optiledge system".{{cite web|title=IKEA Phases Out Wood Pallets|url=http://packagingrevolution.net/ikea-phases-out-wood-pallets/|publisher=Packaging Revolution|date=3 November 2011|access-date=26 February 2013|archive-date=21 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021014658/https://packagingrevolution.net/ikea-phases-out-wood-pallets/|url-status=live}} The OptiLedge product is totally recyclable, made from 100% virgin high-impact copolymer polypropylene (PP) plastic. The system is a "unit load alternative to the use of a pallet. The system consists of the OptiLedge (usually used in pairs), aligned and strapped to the bottom carton to form a base layer upon which to stack more products. Corner boards are used when strapping to minimize the potential for package compression." The conversion began in Germany and Japan, before its introduction into the rest of Europe and North America.{{cite web|title=The OptiLedge Offers Efficiencies for International Shipments|url=http://packagingrevolution.net/the-optiledge-offers-efficiencies-for-international-shipments/|publisher=Packaging Revolution|date=8 December 2011|access-date=26 February 2013|archive-date=21 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021012438/https://packagingrevolution.net/the-optiledge-offers-efficiencies-for-international-shipments/|url-status=live}} The system has been marketed to other companies, and IKEA has formed the OptiLedge company to manage and sell the product.{{cite web|title=OptiLedge|url=http://www.optiledge.com/|publisher=Inter IKEA Systems B.V.|year=2012|access-date=26 February 2013|archive-date=24 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124083200/http://optiledge.com/|url-status=live}}

Since March 2013, IKEA has stopped providing plastic bags to customers, but offers reusable bags for sale.[https://www.ikea.com/sg/en/files/pdf/2e/9d/2e9d0074/ikea-to-do-away-with-disposable-shopping-bags.pdf IKEA to do away with disposable shopping bags] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224193215/https://www.ikea.com/sg/en/files/pdf/2e/9d/2e9d0074/ikea-to-do-away-with-disposable-shopping-bags.pdf |date=28 August 2020 }} (Jan 2013) The IKEA restaurants also only offer reusable plates, knives, forks, spoons, etc. Toilets in some IKEA WC-rooms have been outfitted with dual-function flushers. IKEA has recycling bins for compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), energy-saving bulbs, and batteries.

In 2001, IKEA was one of the first companies to operate its own cross-border goods trains through several countries in Europe.{{cite web|url=http://www.cisionwire.com/banverket/ikea-leads-the-way-on-deregulated-european-railways |archive-url= https://archive.today/20120731170858/http://www.cisionwire.com/banverket/ikea-leads-the-way-on-deregulated-european-railways |url-status=dead |archive-date=31 July 2012 |title=Banverket – press release |publisher=Cision Wire |date=29 June 2001 }}

IKEA has expanded its sustainability plan in the UK to include electric car charge points for customers at all locations by the end of 2013.{{cite web|last=Briggs|first=Fiona|title=Ikea becomes first retailer to install electric vehicle rapid chargers at all UK stores|url=http://www.retailtimes.co.uk/ikea-becomes-first-retailer-install-electric-vehicle-rapid-chargers-uk-stores/|publisher=Retail Times|access-date=13 November 2013|archive-date=9 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809073311/https://www.retailtimes.co.uk/ikea-becomes-first-retailer-install-electric-vehicle-rapid-chargers-uk-stores/|url-status=live}}{{Update inline|date=April 2022}} The effort will include Nissan and Ecotricity and promise to deliver an 80% charge in 30 minutes.{{cite web|last=Murray|first=James|title=IKEA promises rapid rollout of electric car chargers|url=http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2306219/ikea-promises-rapid-rollout-of-electric-car-chargers|publisher=Business Green|access-date=13 November 2013|date=12 November 2013|archive-date=1 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200101005036/https://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2306219/ikea-promises-rapid-rollout-of-electric-car-chargers|url-status=live}}

From 2016, IKEA has only sold energy-efficient LED lightbulbs, lamps and light fixtures. LED lightbulbs use as little as 15% of the power of a regular incandescent light bulb.{{cite web |url=http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about-the-ikea-group/people-and-planet/sustainable-life-at-home/ |title=Make a difference without leaving your home |publisher=IKEA UK |access-date=17 February 2014 |archive-date=1 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200101003521/https://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about-the-ikea-group/people-and-planet/sustainable-life-at-home/ |url-status=dead }}

The INGKA Foundation is officially dedicated to promoting "innovations in architecture and interior design". The net worth of the foundation exceeded the net worth of the much better known Gates Foundation (now the largest private foundation in the world) for a period.{{cite web|url=http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Who-We-Are/General-Information/Foundation-Factsheet|title=Foundation Fact Sheet|publisher=Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation|access-date=9 March 2007|archive-date=26 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130226015506/http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Who-We-Are/General-Information/Foundation-Factsheet|url-status=live}} However, most of the Group's profit is spent on investment.

IKEA is involved in several international charitable causes, particularly in partnership with UNICEF, including:

• In the wake of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, IKEA Australia agreed to match dollar for dollar co-workers' donations and donated all sales of the IKEA Blue Bag to the cause.
• After the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, IKEA gave 500,000 blankets to the relief effort in the region.{{cite web|url=http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006%5C01%5C04%5Cstory_4-1-2006_pg7_29|title=Quake children at greater risk after rain, snowfall: UN|access-date=27 October 2007|archive-date=8 September 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120908121255/http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006%5C01%5C04%5Cstory_4-1-2006_pg7_29|url-status=live}}
• IKEA has provided furniture for over 100 "bridge schools" in Liberia.{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/liberia_27130.html|title=IKEA donates 9,000 tables for Liberia's schools and health centres|publisher=Unicef.org|access-date=10 June 2009|archive-date=11 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090611030948/http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/liberia_27130.html|url-status=dead}}
• Following the 2008 Sichuan earthquake in China, IKEA Beijing sold an alligator toy for 40 yuan (US$5.83, €3.70) with all income going to the children in the earthquake struck area.
• In 2013, IKEA donated more than $2.6{{nbsp}}million to UNICEF to help children and families affected by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.

IKEA also supports American Forests to restore forests and reduce pollution.{{cite web|url=http://www.ikea.com/us/en/about_ikea/newsitem/Plant_A_Tree_Release_092611|title=Plant Trees|publisher=IKEA|date=12 June 2006|access-date=10 June 2009|archive-date=19 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111019121823/http://www.ikea.com/us/en/about_ikea/newsitem/Plant_A_Tree_Release_092611|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.americanforests.org/newsroom/ikea-in-partnership-with-american-forests-announces-the-planting-of-2-million-trees-across-america/|title=American Forests|publisher=American Forests|access-date=27 September 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121101080938/http://www.americanforests.org/newsroom/ikea-in-partnership-with-american-forests-announces-the-planting-of-2-million-trees-across-america/|archive-date=1 November 2012}}

On 3 March 2022, IKEA announced €20{{nbsp}}million donation to UNHCR for relief support of Ukrainians who suffer from the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.{{cite web

|author = Amiah Taylor

|url = https://fortune.com/2022/03/07/google-poland-office-ukraine-aid-russia-invasion/

|title = Google transforms Poland office into help center for Ukrainian refugees

|publisher = Fortune

|date = 7 March 2022

|access-date = 8 March 2022

|archive-date = 7 March 2022

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220307174624/https://fortune.com/2022/03/07/google-poland-office-ukraine-aid-russia-invasion/

|url-status = live

}}{{cite book

|author = Justin Klawans

|url = https://www.newsweek.com/swedish-company-ikea-latest-global-brand-donate-ukrainian-relief-1684721

|title = Swedish Company IKEA Is Latest Global Brand to Donate to Ukrainian Relief

|publisher = Newsweek

|date = 3 March 2022

|access-date = 9 February 2022

|archive-date = 3 March 2022

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220303232058/https://www.newsweek.com/swedish-company-ikea-latest-global-brand-donate-ukrainian-relief-1684721

|url-status = live

}}

IKEA donated €10 million to Doctors Without Borders for its work in Syria in response to the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake.{{cite news |url=https://apnews.com/article/politics-syria-government-turkey-business-435d133d501e350a2e518623824afbf6 |title=Fundraisers for Syria, Turkey earthquake try to deliver aid |last=Beaty |first=Thalia |work=Associated Press News |date=11 February 2023 |access-date=12 February 2023 |archive-date=12 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230212120815/https://apnews.com/article/politics-syria-government-turkey-business-435d133d501e350a2e518623824afbf6 |url-status=live }}

In September 2005, IKEA Social Initiative was formed to manage the company's social involvement on a global level. IKEA Social Initiative is headed by Marianne Barner.{{cite web |title=Social initiatives |url=https://ikeamuseum.com/en/digital/the-story-of-ikea/social-initiatives/ |access-date=1 June 2022 |website=IKEA Museum|archive-date=5 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705193337/https://ikeamuseum.com/en/digital/the-story-of-ikea/social-initiatives/ |url-status=live }}

The main partners of IKEA Social Initiative are UNICEF{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.org/corporate_partners/index_25092.html|title=UNICEF's corporate partnerships|publisher=Unicef.org|access-date=26 December 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110225143122/http://www.unicef.org/corporate_partners/index_25092.html|archive-date=25 February 2011}} and Save the Children.{{Cite web|url=http://www.savethechildren.net/alliance/corporate/corp_ikea/ikea_index3.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090816184854/http://www.savethechildren.net/alliance/corporate/corp_ikea/ikea_index3.html|url-status=dead|title=IKEA and IKEA Foundation {{pipe}} Save the Children International|archive-date=16 August 2009}}

On 23 February 2009, at the ECOSOC event in New York, UNICEF announced that IKEA Social Initiative has become the agency's largest corporate partner, with total commitments of more than US$180{{nbsp}}million (£281,079,000).UNICEF (23 February 2009) [http://www.unicef.org/media/media_48176.html IKEA social initiative adds $48{{nbsp}}million to UNICEF's child health programme] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110210192048/http://www.unicef.org/media/media_48176.html |date=10 February 2011 }}Reuters India (23 February 2009) [http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-38166220090223 Ikea gives UNICEF $48 mln to fight India child labour] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090818013839/http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-38166220090223 |date=18 August 2009 }}

Examples of involvements:

• The IKEA Social Initiative contributes €1 (£1.73) to UNICEF and Save the Children from each soft toy sold during the holiday seasons, raising a total of €16.7{{nbsp}}million (£28.91{{nbsp}}million) so far.{{cite web|url=http://www.ivyroses.com/Health/IKEA-Soft-Toy-campaign|title=UNICEF: IKEA Soft Toy campaign raises €5.4{{nbsp}}million for education projects|access-date=27 May 2016|archive-date=9 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409010516/http://www.ivyroses.com/Health/IKEA-Soft-Toy-campaign|url-status=live}} In 2013, an IKEA soft toy, Lufsig, created a storm and sold out in Hong Kong and in Southern China because it had been misnamed in Chinese.McBain, Sophie (10 December 2013). [http://www.newstatesman.com/business/2013/12/how-lufsig-cuddly-wolf-became-hong-kong-protest-symbol "How Lufsig the cuddly wolf became a Hong Kong protest symbol – A short lesson in the art of mistranslating names into Chinese."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130153502/http://www.newstatesman.com/business/2013/12/how-lufsig-cuddly-wolf-became-hong-kong-protest-symbol |date=30 November 2016 }} The New Statesman.
• The IKEA Social Initiative provided soft toys to children in Burma after Cyclone Nargis.{{cite web|url=http://reliefweb.int/report/myanmar/ikea-provides-soft-toys-children-cyclone-affected-myanmar |title=Save the Children: Ikea Provides Soft Toys to Children in Cyclone-Affected Myanmar |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216080153/http://reliefweb.int/report/myanmar/ikea-provides-soft-toys-children-cyclone-affected-myanmar |archive-date=16 February 2015 }}
• Starting in June 2009, for every Sunnan solar-powered lamp sold in IKEA stores worldwide, IKEA Social Initiative will donate one Sunnan with the help of UNICEF.{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS99995+21-Jul-2009+PRN20090721 |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20100122084116/http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS99995+21-Jul-2009+PRN20090721 |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 January 2010 |title=Reuters / PR Newswire: Sunny News: IKEA and UNICEF Lighten Up Children's Lives in the Developing World |date=21 July 2009 }}
• In September 2011,{{cite web|author=UNHCR: The UN Refugee Agency (Thailand) |url=http://unhcr.or.th/news/general/727 |title=Ikea Foundation gives UNHCR US$62{{nbsp}}million for Somali refugees in Kenya {{pipe}} UNHCR: The UN Refugee Agency (Thailand) |publisher=UNHCR |date=2 September 2011 |access-date=28 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120611182505/http://www.unhcr.or.th/news/general/727 |archive-date=11 June 2012 }} the IKEA Foundation pledged to donate $62{{nbsp}}million to help Somali refugees in Kenya.
• According to The Economist, however, IKEA's charitable giving is meager, "barely a rounding error in the foundation's assets".

In 2009, Sweden's largest television station, SVT, revealed that IKEA's money—the three per cent collection from each store—does not actually go to a charitable foundation in the Netherlands, as IKEA has said. Inter IKEA is owned by a foundation in Liechtenstein, called Interogo, which has amassed $12{{nbsp}}billion (£18{{nbsp}}billion), and is controlled by the Kamprad family.

{{Main|IKEA Catalogue}}

IKEA used to publish an annual catalogue, first published in Swedish in 1951.{{cite web |title=IKEA History |url=http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_AU/about_ikea/the_ikea_way/history/1940_1950.html |access-date=22 March 2010 |archive-date=30 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100330210038/http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_AU/about_ikea/the_ikea_way/history/1940_1950.html |url-status=dead }} It is considered to be the main marketing tool of the company, consuming 70% of its annual marketing budget.{{cite web|title=IKEA Reinvents the Catalog|url=https://www.executiveboard.com/blogs/ikea-reinvents-the-catalog/|access-date=16 February 2015|archive-date=16 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216074212/https://www.executiveboard.com/blogs/ikea-reinvents-the-catalog/|url-status=dead}} The catalogue is distributed both in stores and by mail,{{cite web |title=IKEA FAQ |url=http://www.ikea.com/us/en/customerservices/faq#faqAnswers1-9#0100 |access-date=16 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208040147/http://www.ikea.com/us/en/customerservices/faq#faqAnswers1-9 |archive-date=8 February 2015 |url-status=dead }} with most of it being produced by IKEA Communications AB in IKEA's hometown of Älmhult, Sweden.{{cite web|title=2003 IKEA Catalogue printable facts|url=http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about_ikea/press_room/thecatalogue.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050214031239/http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about_ikea/press_room/thecatalogue.pdf|archive-date=14 February 2005}} At its peak in 2016, 200{{nbsp}}million copies of the catalogue were distributed in 32 languages to more than 50 markets.{{cite news|year=2020|title=After 70 years, IKEA turning the page on the Catalog|url=https://www.ikea.com/us/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/after-70-successful-years-ikea-is-turning-the-page-on-the-catalog-pubad91dde0|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201213071518/https://www.ikea.com/us/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/after-70-successful-years-ikea-is-turning-the-page-on-the-catalog-pubad91dde0|archive-date=13 December 2020|access-date=2 January 2021|website=ikea.com}} In December 2020, IKEA announced that they would cease publication of both the print and digital versions of the catalogue, with the 2021 edition (released in 2020) being the final edition.{{Cite news|last=Ringstrom|first=Anna|date=7 December 2020|title=IKEA turns the page on catalogue after seven decades|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/ikea-catalogue-idINL1N2IN0TN|url-status=live|access-date=2 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102072123/https://www.reuters.com/article/ikea-catalogue/update-1-ikea-turns-the-page-on-catalogue-after-seven-decades-idINL1N2IN0TN|archive-date=2 January 2021}}

File:IKEA Family card from Canada.jpg

In common with some other retailers, IKEA launched a loyalty card called "IKEA Family". The card is free of charge and can be used to obtain discounts on certain products found in-store. It is available worldwide. In conjunction with the card, IKEA also publishes and sells a printed quarterly magazine titled IKEA Family Live which supplements the card and catalogue. The magazine is already printed in thirteen languages and an English edition for the United Kingdom was launched in February 2007. It is expected to have a subscription of over 500,000.{{cite web|author=Daniel Farey-Jones|title=Ikea to introduce UK magazine in February|url=http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/media/article/567690/ikea-introduce-uk-magazine-february/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071130103135/http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/media/article/567690/ikea-introduce-uk-magazine-february/|archive-date=30 November 2007}}

On 12 September 2017, IKEA announced the augmented reality app, IKEA Place, following by Apple's release of its ARkit technology and iOS 11.{{Cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/story/ikea-place-ar-kit-augmented-reality/|title=Ikea's New App Flaunts What You'll Love Most About AR|last=Pardes|first=Arielle|date=20 September 2017|magazine=Wired|access-date=5 December 2017|archive-date=6 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206161526/https://www.wired.com/story/ikea-place-ar-kit-augmented-reality/|url-status=live}} IKEA Place helps consumers to visualize true to scale IKEA products into real environment.{{Cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/08/29/technology/apple-augmented-reality/index.html|title=Apple teases the future of augmented reality apps|last=Regan|first=Jack|date=29 August 2017|work=CNNMoney|access-date=5 December 2017|archive-date=6 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206141230/http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/29/technology/apple-augmented-reality/index.html|url-status=live}}

In 1994, IKEA ran a commercial in the United States, titled Dining Room, widely thought to be the first to feature a homosexual couple; it aired for several weeks before being withdrawn after calls for a boycott and a bomb threat directed at IKEA stores.{{cite web|url=http://www.commercialcloset.org/common/adlibrary/adlibrarydetails.cfm?clientID=11064&QID=76 |title=Dining Room Table Ikea advertisement |publisher=AdRespect Advertising Education Program |year=1994 |access-date=10 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090926070118/http://www.commercialcloset.org/common/adlibrary/adlibrarydetails.cfm?clientID=11064&QID=76 |archive-date=26 September 2009 }} Other IKEA commercials appeal to the wider LGBTQ community, one featuring a transgender woman.{{cite web|url=http://www.commercialcloset.org/common/adlibrary/adlibrarydetails.cfm?clientID=11064&QID=546|title=Redecorate Your Life IKEA advertisement|publisher=AdRespect Advertising Education Program|year=1999|access-date=10 June 2009|archive-date=17 September 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090917141037/http://www.commercialcloset.org/common/adlibrary/adlibrarydetails.cfm?clientID=11064&QID=546|url-status=dead}}

File:IKEABerlin.JPG]]

In 2002, the inaugural television component of the "Unböring" campaign, titled Lamp, went on to win several awards, including a Grand Clio,Eastwood, Allison; "[http://www.boardsmag.com/articles/online/20030522/clios.html MINI missing but "Lamp" shines at Clios] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110814124114/http://www.boardsmag.com/articles/online/20030522/clios.html |date=14 August 2011 }}", Boards, 22 May 2003. Retrieved 22 April 2010. Golds at the London International Awards{{cite web |url=http://2008.liaawards.com/2003/winners/tv/25.html |title=Archive: 2003 Winners, London International Awards |publisher=2008.liaawards.com |access-date=13 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312033811/http://2008.liaawards.com/2003/winners/tv/25.html |archive-date=12 March 2014 |url-status=dead}} and the ANDY Awards,{{cite web|url=http://www.andyawards.com/winners_2003/television2.php |title=Archive: 2003 Winners, ANDY Awards |publisher=Andyawards.com |access-date=13 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120723191839/http://www.andyawards.com/winners_2003/television2.php |archive-date=23 July 2012 }} and the Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival,Mutel, Glen; "[http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/183958/Surprise-Cannes-lamp-wins-Grand-Prix/ Surprise at Cannes as 'lamp' wins Grand Prix] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809235526/http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/183958/Surprise-Cannes-lamp-wins-Grand-Prix/ |date=9 August 2011 }}", Campaign, 27 June 2003. Retrieved 22 April 2010. the most prestigious awards ceremony in the advertising community.

A debate ensued between Fraser Patterson, Chief Executive of Onis, and Andrew McGuinness, partner at Beattie McGuinness Bungay (BMB), the advertising and PR agency that was awarded the £12 million IKEA account.{{cite web|url=http://www.mad.co.uk/BreakingNews/BreakingNews/Articles/bd5d7deae8ff43a0bbd83f8a9dc15ff3/Ikea-campaign-attracts-copycat-claims.html |title=Ikea campaign attracts copycat claims |publisher=Mad.co.uk |date=21 September 2007 |access-date=10 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511055001/http://www.mad.co.uk/BreakingNews/BreakingNews/Articles/bd5d7deae8ff43a0bbd83f8a9dc15ff3/Ikea-campaign-attracts-copycat-claims.html |archive-date=11 May 2009 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.sundayherald.com/business/businessnews/display.var.1741413.0.ikeas_new_marketing_campaign_remarkably_similar_to_strategy_used_by_scotsled_firm.php|title=Ikea's new marketing campaign 'remarkably similar' to strategy used by Scots-led firm|work=Sunday Herald|access-date=10 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011011621/http://www.sundayherald.com/business/businessnews/display.var.1741413.0.ikeas_new_marketing_campaign_remarkably_similar_to_strategy_used_by_scotsled_firm.php|archive-date=11 October 2007}} The essence of the debate was that BMB claimed to be unaware of Onis's campaign as Onis was not an advertising agency. Onis's argument was that its advertising could be seen in prominent landmarks throughout London, having been already accredited, showing concern about the impact IKEA's campaign would have on the originality of its own. BMB and IKEA subsequently agreed to provide Onis with a feature page on the IKEA campaign site linking through to Onis's website for a period of one year.

In 2008, IKEA paired up with the makers of video game The Sims 2 to make a stuff pack called IKEA Home Stuff, featuring many IKEA products. It was released on 24 June 2008 in North America and 26 June 2008 in Europe. It is the second stuff pack with a major brand, the first being The Sims 2 H&M Fashion Stuff.

IKEA took over the title sponsorship of Philadelphia's annual Thanksgiving Day parade in 2008, replacing Boscov's, which filed for bankruptcy in August 2008.

In November 2008, a subway train decorated in IKEA style was introduced in Novosibirsk, Russia.{{cite web|url=http://metkere.com/2008/11/ikea.html|title=IKEA в метро|publisher=metkere.com|language=ru|access-date=28 January 2013|archive-date=19 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130119065112/http://metkere.com/2008/11/ikea.html|url-status=live}} Four cars were turned into a mobile showroom of the Swedish design. The redesigned train, which features colourful seats and fancy curtains, carried passengers until 6 June 2009.

File:Ikea subway.png]]

In March 2010, IKEA developed an event in four important Métro stations in Paris, in which furniture collections are displayed in high-traffic spots, giving potential customers a chance to check out the brand's products. The Métro walls were also filled with prints that showcase IKEA interiors.

In September 2017, IKEA launched the "IKEA Human Catalogue" campaign, in which memory champion Yanjaa Wintersoul memorized all 328 pages of the catalogue in minute detail in just a week before its launch. To prove the legitimacy and accuracy of the campaign, live demonstrations were held at press conferences in IKEA stores across Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand as well as a Facebook Live event held at the Facebook Singapore headquarters and talk show demonstrations in the US with Steve Harvey among others.{{cite web|url=http://ikeahumancatalogue.com/|title=IKEA Human Catalogue|website=ikeahumancatalogue.com|access-date=17 June 2018|archive-date=18 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618002541/http://ikeahumancatalogue.com/|url-status=live}} The advertising campaign was hugely successful winning numerous industry awards including the Webby award 2018 for best social media campaign,{{Cite news|url=https://www.webbyawards.com/winners/2018/advertising-media-pr/advertising-campaigns/social-media-campaigns/the-ikea-human-catalogue/|title=The IKEA Human Catalogue {{!}} The Webby Awards|access-date=17 June 2018|archive-date=17 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180617215855/https://www.webbyawards.com/winners/2018/advertising-media-pr/advertising-campaigns/social-media-campaigns/the-ikea-human-catalogue/|url-status=live}} an Ogilvy award and is currently a contender for the Cannes Lions 2018.{{Cite news|url=http://www.adnews.com.au/news/20-ad-campaigns-tipped-to-win-at-cannes-lions|title=20 ad campaigns tipped to win at Cannes Lions – AdNews|access-date=17 June 2018|archive-date=17 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180617100304/http://www.adnews.com.au/news/20-ad-campaigns-tipped-to-win-at-cannes-lions|url-status=live}}

In 2020, IKEA conducted a "Buy Back Friday" campaign with a message to present a new life to old furniture instead of offering customers to buy new items for Black Friday.{{cite web|title=IKEA Black Friday 2020|url=https://www.ikea.com/us/en/campaigns/black-friday/|access-date=11 April 2021|website=ikea.com|archive-date=11 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411144930/https://www.ikea.com/us/en/campaigns/black-friday/|url-status=usurped}}

In June 2021, IKEA said it had suspended adverts on GB News because of concerns the channel's content would go against their aim to be inclusive. In a statement IKEA said: "We have safeguards in place to prevent our advertising from appearing on platforms that are not in line with our humanistic values. We are in the process of investigating how this may have occurred to ensure it won't happen again in future, and have suspended paid display advertising in the meantime."{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/jun/15/brands-pull-ads-from-gb-news-tv-channel-over-content-concerns|title=Brands pull ads from GB News TV channel over content concerns|access-date=16 June 2021|archive-date=15 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210615235639/https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/jun/15/brands-pull-ads-from-gb-news-tv-channel-over-content-concerns|url-status=live}}

At the end of August 2023, IKEA launched a 6-second advertisement titled “Ads That Skip You” highlighting the benefits of neat organization.{{Cite web |title=We will be brave and fun in our upcoming campaigns: Ikea India's Anna Ohlin {{!}} Advertising |url=https://www.campaignindia.in/article/we-will-be-brave-and-fun-in-our-upcoming-campaigns-ikea-indias-anna-ohlin/492119 |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=Campaign India}}{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=IKEA India shows how organizing can save time with 'Ads That Skip You' Series |url=https://www.afaqs.com/news/advertising/ikea-india-shows-how-organizing-can-save-time-with-ads-that-skip-you-series |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=www.afaqs.com |language=en}} Created by agency Leo Burnett India, the ad illustrates quickly finding items with time to press "skip ad."{{Cite web |title=IKEA: Bạn không bỏ qua quảng cáo, quảng cáo "bỏ qua" bạn |url=https://www.brandsvietnam.com/congdong/topic/336620-ikea-ban-khong-bo-qua-quang-cao-quang-cao-bo-qua-ban |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=www.brandsvietnam.com |language=vi}}{{Cite web |title=Bàn làm việc |url=https://noithatduckhang.com/ban-lam-viec |access-date=2024-11-28 |language=vi}}{{Cite web |date=2023-04-05 |title=Ikea appoints Leo Burnett India as its creative agency: Reports - Exchange4media |url=https://www.exchange4media.com/advertising-news/ikea-appoints-leo-burnett-india-as-its-creative-agency-reports-126493.html |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media |language=en}} The view-through rate exceeded expectations by over 35%, reaching above 90% in all targeted markets. Additionally, there was an overall increase of 32% in clicks compared to the original target.{{Cite web |title=Campaign of the Week: Ikea, Ads That Skip You |url=https://www.contagious.com/news-and-views/ikea-uses-self-skipping-ads-to-promote-practical-furnishings |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=Contagious |language=en}} In September 2024, IKEA added a fresh twist to its marketing strategy by transforming everyday windows into out-of-home advertising spaces.{{Cite web |title=Ad of the Day: Ikea turns private homes into mini billboards |url=https://www.thedrum.com/news/2024/09/20/ad-the-day-ikea-turns-private-homes-mini-billboards |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=The Drum}}

In 2018, the company's plush toy shark "Blåhaj" was widely used in an internet meme,{{cite web |last=Samson |first=Anna |title=A toy shark from IKEA has blown up on TikTok as creators say it provides them with a unique kind of comfort and community |url=https://www.insider.com/ikea-blahaj-shark-toy-tiktok-viral-videos-2022-3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810140933/https://www.insider.com/ikea-blahaj-shark-toy-tiktok-viral-videos-2022-3 |archive-date=10 August 2022 |access-date=18 July 2022 |website=Insider}}{{cite web |last=Yap |first=Mae Yen |date=20 January 2020 |title=Someone created a Twitter account of the IKEA shark going about life and it's adorable |url=https://sea.mashable.com/culture/8683/someone-created-a-twitter-account-of-the-ikea-shark-going-about-life-and-its-adorable |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211030172418/https://sea.mashable.com/culture/8683/someone-created-a-twitter-account-of-the-ikea-shark-going-about-life-and-its-adorable |archive-date=30 October 2021 |access-date=18 July 2022 |website=Mashable SEA}}{{cite web |date=26 October 2018 |title=People Around the world are obsessed with this Plush Shark from IKEA |url=https://mymodernmet.com/toy-shark-blaha-ikea/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220719035620/https://mymodernmet.com/toy-shark-blaha-ikea/ |archive-date=19 July 2022 |access-date=19 July 2022 |website=My Modern Met}} with social media users posting humorous photos of it in their homes.{{cite web |title=People are rearranging IKEA Shark plushies to make them do human things |url=https://mothership.sg/2019/12/ikea-shark-plushies-human/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220718192454/https://mothership.sg/2019/12/ikea-shark-plushies-human/ |archive-date=18 July 2022 |access-date=18 July 2022 |website=mothership.sg}}

IKEA has been referenced a number of times in novelty music. In 2003, American musician Jonathan Coulton released the song "IKEA" on the album Smoking Monkey. In 2005, British musician Mitch Benn with the band The Distractions penned the novelty song "Ikea".{{Cite web |title=IKEA, by Mitch Benn & the Distractions |url=https://mitchbenn.bandcamp.com/track/ikea-2 |access-date=2024-09-05 |website=Mitch Benn |language=en}} In December 2019, comedy metal band Nanowar of Steel released the song Valhallelujah which is dedicated to Odin and IKEA. The music video features a longship with the sail adorned with the IKEA logo, and a fictional IKEA catalogue written in Old Norse runes. The lyrics include references to various IKEA products, namely BEDDINGE, KIVIK, VITTSJÖ, KNOPPARP, BESTÅ and SLATTUM.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9WWz95ripA |title=NANOWAR OF STEEL - Valhalleluja (ft. Angus McFife from Gloryhammer) {{!}} Napalm Records |date=2019-12-13 |last=Napalm Records |access-date=2024-06-12 |via=YouTube}}

The 1999 American movie Fight Club references IKEA furniture to show the consumerist culture of modern times.

IKEA stores have been featured in many works of fiction. Some examples include:

• The 1986 Swedish crime comedy film Jönssonligan dyker upp igen features a failed robbery of the IKEA store at Kungens Kurva by the eponymous gang.{{Cite web |last=Björk |first=Stellan |date=2020-04-17 |title=Kamprads djärva satsning gick hem |trans-title=Kamprad's bold bet succeeded |url=https://www.bizstories.se/foretagen/kamprads-djarva-satsning-gick-hem/ |access-date=2024-08-09 |website=BizStories |language=sv}}
• The 2009 American film 500 Days of Summer features the main characters flirting around the showroom of an IKEA store. It was filmed on-location at an IKEA store. One of the tracks from the film's score is entitled "Ikea" to reflect the scene.{{cite news |date=19 July 2019 |title=Eight surprising facts about 500 Days of Summer |work=The New Zealand Herald |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=12251047 |url-status=live |access-date=28 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801183919/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=12251047 |archive-date=1 August 2020}}
• IKEA Heights, a 2009 comedic melodrama web series, was filmed without permission in an IKEA store.{{Cite web |last=Neil |first=Dan |date=2009-09-08 |title=Virality erupts at IKEA in Burbank |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-sep-08-fi-neil8-story.html |access-date=2023-05-31 |website=Los Angeles Times}}
• The 2014 novel The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir Who Got Trapped in an Ikea Wardrobe by French author Romain Puertolas features a trip to an IKEA store in Paris, France.{{cite news |author=Daniel Hahn |title=The Extraordinary Journey Of The Fakir Who Got Trapped In An Ikea Wardrobe By Romain Puertolas (Trs by Sam Taylor) – book review |newspaper=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-extraordinary-journey-of-the-fakir-who-got-trapped-in-an-ikea-wardrobe-by-romain-puertolas-trs-by-sam-taylor--book-review-9657117.html |url-status=live |access-date=13 December 2019 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141217141716/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-extraordinary-journey-of-the-fakir-who-got-trapped-in-an-ikea-wardrobe-by-romain-puertolas-trs-by-sam-taylor--book-review-9657117.html |archive-date=17 December 2014}}
• The 2014 horror comedy novel Horrorstör is set in a haunted store called ORSK, modelled on IKEA, and the novel is designed to look like the IKEA catalogue.{{cite magazine |last=Hibberd |first=James |date=5 August 2015 |title=Fox orders pilot about an Ikea-like store selling haunted furniture |url=https://ew.com/article/2015/08/05/horrorstor-fox/ |url-status=live |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220719093731/https://ew.com/article/2015/08/05/horrorstor-fox/ |archive-date=19 July 2022 |access-date=19 July 2022}}
• The SCP Foundation, an online collaborative horror writing community documenting fictional anomalies, features an entry (numbered SCP-3008) originating in 2017 about an IKEA store which is notably bigger on the inside than its exterior implies, and from which escaping is difficult.{{cite web|last1=Beschizza|first1=Rob|title=Brilliant short story about being trapped in an infinite IKEA|url=https://boingboing.net/2017/06/29/brilliant-short-story-about-be.html|website=Boing Boing|date=29 June 2017|access-date=5 August 2017|archive-date=4 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804073701/http://boingboing.net/2017/06/29/brilliant-short-story-about-be.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web | title=SCP-3008 | url=http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-3008 | website=SCP Foundation | access-date=13 December 2019 | archive-date=21 December 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221035850/http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-3008 | url-status=live }} The interior of this store is populated by entities dressed in IKEA staff attire, resembling highly deformed, faceless humanoids, which are normally passive during the "day" (when the lights are switched on) but become aggressive during the "night" (when the lights are switched off), informing 'customers' to "leave the store", and enforcing this if not listened to.
• A number of survival horror video games have been created based on SCP-3008.{{cite web | title=Steam Workshop :: SCP 3008 | url=https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1851742206 | website=Steam Community | access-date=13 December 2019 | archive-date=1 August 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801190705/https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1851742206 | url-status=live }}
• The 2021 children's picture book Bears Out of The Box features IKEA's Fabler Bjorn doll, who is trying to venture outside the store.{{cite web |date=23 January 2021 |title=BEARS OUT OF THE BOX – Stefan Cebo – EuropeBooks |url=http://www.europebooks.co.uk/bears-out-of-the-box-stefan-cebo/ |access-date=16 July 2022 |language=it-IT |archive-date=16 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716053341/http://www.europebooks.co.uk/bears-out-of-the-box-stefan-cebo/ |url-status=live }}{{cite book |title=BEARS OUT OF THE BOX Pocket Book – January 22, 2021 |url=https://www.amazon.com/BEARS-OUT-BOX-build-universes/dp/B08MSMJ4DM |access-date=16 July 2022|date=22 January 2021 |publisher=Europa Ediciones |isbn=979-12-201-0410-4 |archive-date=16 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716053340/https://www.amazon.com/BEARS-OUT-BOX-build-universes/dp/B08MSMJ4DM |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Bears out of the Box |url=https://www.goodreads.com/work/best_book/77636740-bears-out-of-the-box |access-date=16 July 2022 |website=goodreads.com |archive-date=21 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421205341/https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52371370-bears-out-of-the-box |url-status=live }}

• Criticism of IKEA

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{{Commons}}

• {{Official website|https://www.ikea.com}}
• {{OpenCorp}}

{{Finance links | name = IKEA International A/S | google = 5118386 | yahoo = 42/42925 | hoovers = Ikea_AG.70c1c74558e7d2e9 }}

{{Major retail companies}}

{{IKEA}}

{{European Retail Round Table}}

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