4 ms·

I think people are excited about IKEA because it's inexpensive, comes in a flat box, and can be taken home right now. Furthermore, I bet IKEA has clean lines n

I think people are excited about IKEA because it's inexpensive, comes in a flat box, and can be taken home right now. Furthermore, I bet IKEA has clean lines not for the sake of clean lines but rather because clean lines can be made inexpensively and packed into a flat box.

analog31 11y ago
In my neighborhood, those qualities are also appealing when shopping on a budget to furnish smaller houses. Form follows function.
TheOtherHobbes 11y ago
A furniture store near me went into administration recently. Some of its sofas cost north of £10,000. They looked a lot like IKEA sofas, and the rumour was they were sourced from the same factories and made from similar materials, but offered in a wider range with a hint of extra trim - mostly nicer looking feet.
- gherkin0 11y ago
  > They looked a lot like IKEA sofas, and the rumour was they were sourced from the same factories and made from similar material I was always under the impression that Ikea designed and sold all of its own designs. Is it really a place that sells mostly desirable private-label goods from 3rd parties, a-la Trader Joe's? > but offered in a wider range with a hint of extra trim - mostly nicer looking feet. My bother was telling me last weekend about http://www.prettypegs.com/us/ http://www.prettypegs.com/us/. Apparently there's an ecosystem developing around Ikea furniture to provide that. Also, to completely change the subject. I recently learned that all the Philips-looking screws on Ikea furniture are "Posidriv" screws not Philips and you need special driver for them, because a Philips driver will likely ruin them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives
  - imtringued 11y ago
    Why don't they just include the correct screwdriver with the furniture? It's only going to cost them like one or two dollars and will likely increase customer satisfaction.
    - nickez 11y ago
      "Every" screwdriver kit you can buy in Sweden is very likely to have both PZ and PH included.
      - cdcarter 11y ago
        And many American sets will come with Pozidrive now. I believe including the $9.99 "FIXA" tool kit you can get at IKEA checkouts.
- f_allwein 11y ago
  IKEA is nice, but is nothing like good quality traditional furniture made of solid wood. So if you want (and can afford) something to last for generations, go for something like this: http://www.manufactum.com/cherry-wood-standing-bureau-p1465637/?c=193601 http://www.manufactum.com/cherry-wood-standing-bureau-p14656...
  - ViViDboarder 11y ago
    They make solid wood furniture as well. Much more expensive, but still way cheaper than many others.
ethbro 11y ago
This is the biggest point that so many of these articles miss. Aka "It's the economy, stupid." Scandinavian design is clean, functional design that can also be produced at a reasonable price. Any article that takes a "Scandinavian design (excluding IKEA of course, ha ha ha poor people)" bent deserves to be ignored. You know why people buy ugly "American" furniture? Because the alternative is too expensive! The solution to an ugly $500 couch is not a $10,000 minimalist birch piece of furniture. PS: The iterative design process of IKEA with an emphasis on eliminating cost without compromising function is a marvel of engineering. There have been a few stories, but here's one: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303376904579134743769761378 http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB100014240527023033769045791347...
gdubs 11y ago
Behavioral Economics would say people love ikea because they put it together. [1] 1: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKEA_effect https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKEA_effect
- pwthornton 11y ago
  I think there is something to this, and IKEA really takes this to another level. There are plenty of resources online about IKEA-hacks -- ways to take IKEA products and out them together in unwoxwcted ways. These hacks don't require you to be a wood worker or engineer, and that only adds to the sense that you helped build it. I put together a 2 X 4 IKEA bookshelf with a 4 x 4 underneath it to create a 6 X 4. Because IKEA is so big and has so many products, there are a lot of ways to mix and match their products to come up with something unique. Traditional furniture store are all about making those decisions for you.

analog31 11y ago

In my neighborhood, those qualities are also appealing when shopping on a budget to furnish smaller houses. Form follows function.

TheOtherHobbes 11y ago

A furniture store near me went into administration recently. Some of its sofas cost north of £10,000. They looked a lot like IKEA sofas, and the rumour was they were sourced from the same factories and made from similar materials, but offered in a wider range with a hint of extra trim - mostly nicer looking feet.

gherkin0 11y ago
> They looked a lot like IKEA sofas, and the rumour was they were sourced from the same factories and made from similar material I was always under the impression that Ikea designed and sold all of its own designs. Is it really a place that sells mostly desirable private-label goods from 3rd parties, a-la Trader Joe's? > but offered in a wider range with a hint of extra trim - mostly nicer looking feet. My bother was telling me last weekend about http://www.prettypegs.com/us/ http://www.prettypegs.com/us/. Apparently there's an ecosystem developing around Ikea furniture to provide that. Also, to completely change the subject. I recently learned that all the Philips-looking screws on Ikea furniture are "Posidriv" screws not Philips and you need special driver for them, because a Philips driver will likely ruin them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives
- imtringued 11y ago
  Why don't they just include the correct screwdriver with the furniture? It's only going to cost them like one or two dollars and will likely increase customer satisfaction.
  - nickez 11y ago
    "Every" screwdriver kit you can buy in Sweden is very likely to have both PZ and PH included.
    - cdcarter 11y ago
      And many American sets will come with Pozidrive now. I believe including the $9.99 "FIXA" tool kit you can get at IKEA checkouts.
f_allwein 11y ago
IKEA is nice, but is nothing like good quality traditional furniture made of solid wood. So if you want (and can afford) something to last for generations, go for something like this: http://www.manufactum.com/cherry-wood-standing-bureau-p1465637/?c=193601 http://www.manufactum.com/cherry-wood-standing-bureau-p14656...
- ViViDboarder 11y ago
  They make solid wood furniture as well. Much more expensive, but still way cheaper than many others.

ethbro 11y ago

This is the biggest point that so many of these articles miss. Aka "It's the economy, stupid." Scandinavian design is clean, functional design that can also be produced at a reasonable price. Any article that takes a "Scandinavian design (excluding IKEA of course, ha ha ha poor people)" bent deserves to be ignored. You know why people buy ugly "American" furniture? Because the alternative is too expensive! The solution to an ugly $500 couch is not a $10,000 minimalist birch piece of furniture. PS: The iterative design process of IKEA with an emphasis on eliminating cost without compromising function is a marvel of engineering. There have been a few stories, but here's one: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303376904579134743769761378 http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB100014240527023033769045791347...

gdubs 11y ago

Behavioral Economics would say people love ikea because they put it together. [1] 1: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKEA_effect https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKEA_effect

pwthornton 11y ago
I think there is something to this, and IKEA really takes this to another level. There are plenty of resources online about IKEA-hacks -- ways to take IKEA products and out them together in unwoxwcted ways. These hacks don't require you to be a wood worker or engineer, and that only adds to the sense that you helped build it. I put together a 2 X 4 IKEA bookshelf with a 4 x 4 underneath it to create a 6 X 4. Because IKEA is so big and has so many products, there are a lot of ways to mix and match their products to come up with something unique. Traditional furniture store are all about making those decisions for you.