The IKEA Concept

Our roots

The IKEA brand is born

To reward him for doing well in school, Ingvar’s father gave him a small sum of money which he used to set up a company. In 1948 he starts selling furniture, signalling the start of the IKEA range as we know it.

Well-fed customers are happy customers

In June 1960, only coffee and cold dishes were offered in IKEA stores. By the end of the year, the IKEA restaurant kitchen was fully equipped, including a microwave oven – a novelty at the time. Everything from hot snacks such as hamburgers to á la carte dishes were served. The idea comes from something Ingvar observed: people left the store at lunchtime to eat in one of the restaurants or street kitchens in Älmhult. This interrupted the whole buying process. He realised that hungry customers buy less. Or as we often say, it’s tough to do business on an empty stomach.

The IKEA catalogue

IKEA was founded in Älmhult, in a relatively remote part of Sweden, so it was not easy to reach potential customers in the big cities. So in 1951 the IKEA catalogue was born, and by then Ingvar had already conceived IKEA as a brand that sold quality furniture at low prices:

"Why are beautiful products only made for a small audience? Quality design and function should also be accessible at low prices." – Ingvar Kamprad

The prices in the first IKEA catalogue were so low that people were initially sceptical about the quality of the products. Ingvar wanted to dispel these doubts and turned an old workshop in Älmhult into a showroom where people could come and inspect the products before ordering.

We love challenges!

Throughout our history, our best ideas have always come from the biggest challenges, and we believe that's what makes us different. Today IKEA is one of the most famous home furnishing brands in the world. Add in the thousands of people who work for our suppliers, and we have nearly 1 million people working with us to fulfil our vision of giving people a better life. And that's just the beginning. As Ingvar Kamprad said, "There is still so much to do. A bright future awaits us!"