Abstract

The caselet looks at how IKEA, a small Swedish company, became a hugely popular and successful home furnishing company all over the world. It discusses the innovative strategies that IKEA adopted to offer quality products at affordable prices. Further, it describes how the company experienced a setback in the US market, how it adapted itself to the new situation and ultimately captured the market.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• How IKEA managed to offer quality home furnishing products at affordable prices worldwide
• and How the company tackled the problems it faced in the US market

Keywords

IKEA, home furnishing companies, self-assembled furniture, 'contemporary Scandinavian style' furniture, price conscious families, 'flat packaging mechanism', standardized products, economies of scale, optimum stock position, global distribution system