Operational Efficiency at Ikea
History of IKEA
IKEA, the world’s largest furniture manufacturer, began from humble roots near Agunnayrd, Sweden. In the late 20’s and early 30’s a young Ingvar Kamprad began buying matchsticks in bulk, only to sell them individually to neighbors for a small margin. The business savvy boy expanded his sales to include Christmas cards, seeds, pens and pencils. But it wasn’t until, at the age of 17 with money he received from his father for his academic performance, did Ingvar have the means to expand his offerings to include picture frames, wallets, and jewelry; ultimately formalizing his retail operations under the name IKEA.
The 1940 and 50s brought a burgeoning demand for furniture, largely as a result of the innovative and attractive designs originating from local artisans and manufacturers. Recognizing the opportunity to address this demand Ingvar opted to drop all other products and concentrate solely on furniture. 1951 also saw the birth of an IKEA icon – the company’s first printed catalog, which became a hallmark of the IKEA marketing process (by 2010, 197 million copies of the IKEA catalog were printed in 61 editions and 29 languages). In 1953 IKEA opened its first showroom to give customers an opportunity to touch and feel the furniture before placing an order. 1956 marked two revolutionary steps for the company: primarily, IKEA decided to design and manufacture its own furniture, and secondly the furniture would require customer assembly and be available in flat boxes—a function which serves as the precursor to “design for logistics”.
The first IKEA store opened in 1958 in Almhult, Sweden; with domestic success, it did not take long for Kamprad to expand internationally. In 1963, IKEA opened its doors in Oslo, Norway. Today there are 321 IKEA stores in 38 countries. As of fiscal year 2010, this retail behemoth employees 127,000 associates and generates sales of more than 23.1 billion Euro. Despite its size, the company maintains
IKEA, the world’s largest furniture manufacturer, began from humble roots near Agunnayrd, Sweden. In the late 20’s and early 30’s a young Ingvar Kamprad began buying matchsticks in bulk, only to sell them individually to neighbors for a small margin. The business savvy boy expanded his sales to include Christmas cards, seeds, pens and pencils. But it wasn’t until, at the age of 17 with money he received from his father for his academic performance, did Ingvar have the means to expand his offerings to include picture frames, wallets, and jewelry; ultimately formalizing his retail operations under the name IKEA.
The 1940 and 50s brought a burgeoning demand for furniture, largely as a result of the innovative and attractive designs originating from local artisans and manufacturers. Recognizing the opportunity to address this demand Ingvar opted to drop all other products and concentrate solely on furniture. 1951 also saw the birth of an IKEA icon – the company’s first printed catalog, which became a hallmark of the IKEA marketing process (by 2010, 197 million copies of the IKEA catalog were printed in 61 editions and 29 languages). In 1953 IKEA opened its first showroom to give customers an opportunity to touch and feel the furniture before placing an order. 1956 marked two revolutionary steps for the company: primarily, IKEA decided to design and manufacture its own furniture, and secondly the furniture would require customer assembly and be available in flat boxes—a function which serves as the precursor to “design for logistics”.
The first IKEA store opened in 1958 in Almhult, Sweden; with domestic success, it did not take long for Kamprad to expand internationally. In 1963, IKEA opened its doors in Oslo, Norway. Today there are 321 IKEA stores in 38 countries. As of fiscal year 2010, this retail behemoth employees 127,000 associates and generates sales of more than 23.1 billion Euro. Despite its size, the company maintains