12 Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know about IKEA. You Are Bound to Be Surprised with Some of Them!
The famous stores have been with us for a long time. Throughout years the chain has introduced several side-attractions, including hot-dogs, free pencils or paper tape measures. No wonder that they are packed with people who sometimes continue their shopping spree until the place closes. Even if you have been there several times and you know a lot about the brand, some facts will be still surprising. Here we go!
#1 The origins of the brand name
The name is not random. The acronym consists of the first letters of the first name and surname of the founder of the company (Ingvar Kamprad), the farm where he grew up (Elmtaryd) and the town nearest his home (Agunnaryd)
#2 The bookcase hit
The most popular furniture all over the world is the Billy bookcase. Every 10 seconds, one piece is bought globally (online or in-store).
#3 Logo evolution
This how the logo of this popular chain has been evolving.
#4 Flat-pack furniture
It comes as no surprise that the furniture is sold in flat boxes now. Originally, though, chairs or cabinets were delivered by mail already assembled. Unfortunately, they would very often get damaged. Consequently, in 1956 a decision was made to take the legs off the LÖVET table and pack them into the box separately. The piece is still available today – it is called LÖVBACKEN
#5 The meatballs
The most popular dish sold all over the world is beef & pork meatballs, with potato puree, green pea and bilberry jam. Every year, approximately 150 million portions are eaten globally.
#6 Instead of numbers
The names of specific models have got their story, too. The founder of IKEA was dyslectic and found it really difficult to remember sequences of digits.
The names of particular pieces stand for something ‘real’:
• sofas are names of Swedish towns,
• carpets are names of Danish towns,
• bathroom accessories are names of Swedish lakes and rivers,
• tables and chairs are names of Finnish towns,
• curtains are Swedish first names,
• wardrobes and beds are names of Norwegian towns.
#7 IKEA to be blamed for overpopulation?
According to statistics, every 10th European was conceived on an IKEA bed. This clearly shows how popular the brand is.
#8 Black bread rolls and sausages
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the presence on Japanese market, IKEA introduced black hot-dogs. The dark color of the roll came from bamboo charcoal. Ninja Dog was available until the end of 2016.
#9 Assemble it yourself
You can assemble the furniture you buy at IKEA without any extra tools. This is nothing but a psychological trick. When you put the pieces together on your own, you feel enormous satisfaction once it’s over. Even if the piece does not look perfect…
#10 Veg-balls
More and more countries introduce vegetarian dishes in IKEA bars. For example, in Poland they are made of potatoes, onion, oat and pea protein. Every year about 340 thousand portions of ‘vege-balls’ are sold there.
#11 Goodbye to plastic
Ikea was one of the first chains which stopped using plastic carriers. Very soon they will manage to completely remove plastic bags from their stores.
#12 Second-hand furniture
IKEA is planning to open its first second-hand furniture store. Anything sold there will have been renovated or fixed, be that tables, chairs or sofas. It’s all about climate. Though the date hasn’t been officially announced, we already know that it will operate in a Swedish town of Eskilstuna.
Which fact did you find the most surprising? Let us know in your comments.
