It has been 25 years since Ikea opened their first store in Warrington and the Swedish furniture company’s products have become a fixture in the nation’s homes.
Since 1987, eight million Billy bookcases and five million Poang chairs have been purchased by British shoppers and it is estimated that one in five people sleep on an Ikea mattress.
Let’s face it, there are definitely some downsides to shopping at Ikea – the never ending maze before you get to the warehouse (where often the furniture you want is no longer in stock), the crowds of people milling around, the screaming children (the screaming adults) and the biggest draw back in my opinion is arriving home and having to assemble the furniture yourself with only the help of piece of paper featuring unhelpful diagrams.
There are also a great deal of plus points for Ikea though, including the reasonably priced products, practical and well thought out designs, a huge range and, in my opinion, going to Ikea is just really fun.
But what is it about Ikea that captured Britain’s and the world’s interior decorating imagination? I have an Ikea bookcase, cabinet and coffee table as well as a lot of Ikea crockery and glassware. I would be mortified if someone was wearing the same outfit as me but I wouldn’t mind if I went to someone’s house and they had the same Ikea furniture. I think it’s because it’s all so adaptable, everything looks different in each home.
Ikea as a brand is instantly recognisable and you know that the products that you buy from there will be of a good quality. Ikea furniture probably won’t be passed down from generation to generation but it serves its purpose. Where else can you furnish an entire house in a couple of hours (if you manage to get through the crowds)? It is iconic and I for one am happy that they have been so successful in the UK. Twenty five more years!