It’s been confirmed: IKEA is finally coming in the Philippines! Although we still have no clue when and where this Scandinavian furniture company is planning to set up shop, it doesn’t stop us from fantasizing about strolling through aisles, eating IKEA-brand meatballs, and finding the perfect pieces for our dream home…
…and, of course, all the funny videos Pinoys will post about IKEA’s ridiculous product names and DIY furniture assembly.
And while we’re waiting for that day to come, here are some mind-blowing facts about the world’s largest furniture provider.
IKEA is an acronym
It probably never occurred to you but IKEA is an acronym and it stands for Ingvar Kamprad (the founder’s name), Elmtaryd (the farm where Kamprad was raised), and Agunnaryd (the Swedish town where Kamprad grew up).
IKEA’s products use approximately 1% of the entire world’s commercial supply of wood
While that might not seem like a lot, IKEA is making huge efforts to source its products more sustainably. According to their annual sustainability report for Fiscal Year 2016, 61% of their wood is already from friendlier sources which they hope to increase to 100% by 2020.
IKEA is building its own town in London
In 2012, news broke out that IKEA is planning to build a residential on a 26-acre site next to the Olympic Park in Stratford, London. It will consist of office spaces, yoga studios, schools, theaters, apartments, a Marriott hotel, and shops. And while there will be no IKEA store within the area — strange as it may seem — you can expect all the furniture to be from IKEA. No word yet on the due date of the project, though!
There’s a reason why its products are named that way
Believe it or not, there’s actually a good reason why IKEA gives its products weird names instead of assigning a number code — IKEA’s founder Ingvar Kamprad is dyslexic. During the infancy of IKEA, he had trouble remembering the product codes. But instead of getting someone else to handle that job, he created a more creative naming system to help him organize his products more easily.
And no, these names don’t come out of nowhere! Garden furniture are named after Swedish Islands, carpets are assigned Danish place names, curtain accessories are named after mathematical and geometric terms, and so on.
The first US ad to feature a gay couple was an IKEA ad
The ad “Dining Room” aired in 1994 by Deutsch Agency and ran after 10 P.M. in IKEA’s major US markets: New York, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. Then art director of Deutsch, Patrick O’Neill, said in a 2014 interview with Adweek that they at the agency “thought it was a great idea and felt like it was a true representation of IKEA’s values, which is they’re always accepting of everyone.”
It’s okay to take naps in China’s IKEA stores
If you ever want to take a short nap after sightseeing in Beijing, you can head to the nearest IKEA store and snooze there! Their “Try Before You Buy” policy allows locals to fall asleep on the display furniture without forcing them to guarantee a purchase.
IKEA’s most popular item is a bookshelf
Every 10 seconds, a BILLY bookshelf gets sold. It might come off as a surprise at first but it makes sense — IKEA furniture are all about simplicity, and that alone makes them a global success!
A wedding took place in an IKEA
#WeddingGoals? You be the judge.
An Australian couple tied the knot at a Sydney branch on Valentine’s Day in 2013 with every element of the ceremony and reception featuring IKEA products handpicked by them. When asked why they chose this unusual setting for the biggest moment of their lives, they said, “It felt right to be able to show our commitment to one another by getting married somewhere we both love and to show the world that romance can be alive anywhere, even in the aisles of IKEA. Our visits to IKEA over the years have actually brought the two of us closer!”
What are you most looking forward to when IKEA arrives in Manila? Tell us below!
