Ikea Strategic Brand Management

When people talk about furnitures, the first brand which comes to mind is IKEA. Originating from Sweden, IKEA first open shop in 1958, then in Norway in 1963 and soon after, it spread throughout the whole of Europe and thus slowly making its way to the whole world. With their biggest market in Germany with 45 stores followed by United States with 35 stores, now IKEA have 313 stores in 30 countries. (Cult Branding, 2012). Known for its simplistic design which has maximum optimization, IKEA product ranges from not only furniture but also different furniture segments such as kitchen cabinets, build-in wardrobe and much other furniture.

IKEA strategic brand management in making the brand such a craze among its customer and thus leading to a brand value which is important for IKEA’s entire product line making IKEA one of the most valuable brand in the furniture niche. A visit to IKEA for either shopping or leisure would reveal several factors on why customers come back over and over again for not only products from IKEA but also the shopping experience from IKEA. Comparing a visit to IKEA with any other furniture outlet is different as one gets the sense of belongingness as the layout of every IKEA store makes one feels homely.

It is so that customers can visualize their homes when buying IKEA products. IKEA’s interior designing team designed the rooms or kitchens in a way that people could visualize how their homes will look like before purchasing the product from IKEA making a purchase from IKEA a worthwhile one. Adding to that, IKEA made things different as its furniture and home furnishing shopping is differentiated so well, consumers who wanted specific products from specific departments of the home. Another value added to IKEA’s brand is about the design of the products.

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Eventhough IKEA’s product design are minimalistic, the products presents itself in an innovative way in such that it does not take much space and yet still being able to function better or on par with what the particular product will do which still look pleasant to house owners or visitors instead of a sore eye. For instance, IKEA’s simple Lackside coffee table might look like a dull one in black and white, but throwing in the colours made it fun to look it although an old school design is used.

In a sense, that the designs are modern and traditional with functionality. IKEA’s products always come with a set of instruction manuals that are not complicated and are straightforward making IKEA’s product being easily assemble without much of hassle which in turn keep their prices low and reasonable to the range of products being sold. Making products in such way added value to the brand IKEA as furnitures are often regarded as comes in one piece or do it yourselves which is very difficult to assemble.

Having products in low and reasonable price range, it is no surprise that the brand IKEA appeals to most people, primarily to young urban couples or families which do not want to burn a deep hole in their pockets in their investment of their first house. However, this does not mean that people on the middle income or higher income do not buy products from IKEA. IKEA produces products in such it varies in prices depending on its differences. Therefore, the brand IKEA is made stronger by introducing a variety of product ranges with different product prices which caters and fulfill to any level of income consumer’s need in the market.

Despite having products at such low prices, this does not show that products sold are not of quality as buyers are given a sense of value to their household items but satisfying the customers saying “less is more”. Not only that, every single year, IKEA’s product prices are cut down even further which made it favourable for consumers who could not afford to get it the following year, thus making the IKEA brand also a favourable one. Taking things a few steps back, most of IKEA’s product are made of wood which somehow does not go well with the word environment in various ways. Therefore, waste reduction is a crucial key in production.

IKEA’s designers and engineers strive to reduce the amount of material used and wasted in production of its furnitures. Additionally, many waste products are then used to make new products, which in turn further reducing overall cost both to the pocketbook as well as to the environment. Adding on to this, the Recovery Department is responsible for sorting and recycling all recyclable materials, including packaging broken down in-sotre as well as materials collected from customers at recycling donation bins where available. In conclusion, IKEA’s strategic brand management involves its retail and alue to be seen by consumers all around the world. Using differentiation to its advantage, IKEA differentiates themselves with other big home furnishing and furnishing outlets available such as Big Brand, Darby and Vandrie through products which are innovative, quality and yet low in prices. And thus, living to its tagline “affordable solutions for better living” says it all. (IKEA 2012) References Cult Branding. (2012). The IKEA Cult Brand Profile. The Cult Branding Company. Retrieved from http://www. cult-branding. com/ikea-cult-brand-profile IKEA (2012). Welcome to IKEA. Retrieved from http://www. ikea. com/

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