vii. How the business gained success etc.
viii. The ups & downs of the entrepreneur & his/her business.
At first, IKEA sold pens, pencils, picture frames, wallets, table runners, jewelry, watches, nylon stockings – things that people usually needed back then. In 1945, about two years after he founded his company, Ingvar decided it was time to advertize in newspapers. This decision brought him a lot of new clients whom he satisfied with fast deliveries via the county milk van.
It wasn’t long before Kamprad decided to expand the IKEA product range by introducing furniture to its offer. This idea received a very positive response from the clients and the company’s sales continued to grow at an encouraging rate. Unfortunately, the competition also grew, meaning that Kamprad had to find a new way to stay on top. In 1953 the first IKEA furniture showroom was opened, giving customers the opportunity to see and touch the products before ordering them. With this move, the competition problem was pretty much solved…for the moment.
Not long after this, pressure from the competitors determined the suppliers to boycott IKEA. Kamprad however managed to turn the problem into an opportunity: in 1955 IKEA started to design its own furniture. This eventually led to improved functions and innovative designs, again raising the company above its competitors. One day, an employee came with this brilliant idea of taking off the legs of a table to avoid transportation damage and also to make the table fit into a car. Thus a new trend was born: IKEA started designing for flat packaging. As a result, the prices were lowered for the customers, who now felt more enthusiastic about each purchase, because they had the opportunity to enjoy assembling the furniture themselves.
Kamprad's vision has been the driving force behind IKEA's succcess. IKEA hires its own designers, who have received numerous awards over the years. Kamprad believes that the company exists not just to improve people's lives, but to improve the people themselves. The self-service store design and ease of assembly of their furniture are not merely cost controls, but an opportunity for self-sufficiency. This vision is reinforced in their advertising and catalog, as well.
