Ikea Case Study

Harvard Business School 9-390-132 rP os t Rev. July 22, 1996 Ingvar Kamprad and IKEA op yo With a 1988 perturbation of 14 1/2 billion Swedish Kronor (US $1 ? SKr 6 in 1988) and 75 outlets in 19 countries, IKEA had suffer the worlds largest home furnishings retailer. As the company approached the 1990s, however, its man be onrs go round a number of major challenges. Changes in demographics were causing some to test IKEAs historical product line policy. Others wondered if the company had not bitten lousiness too much by attempting major new commercialise place entries simultaneously in two European countries (U.K. and Italy), the get together States, and several(prenominal) Eastern Bloc countries. Finally, there was widespread concern about the prox of the company without its imbeder, strategic architect, and cultural guru, Ingvar Kamprad. IKEA Background and floor tC In 1989, piece of furniture retailing ecumenical was still large ly a staccato national industry in which small manufacturers and distributors catered to the demands of their local markets. Consumer preferences varied by region, and there were hardly a(prenominal) retailers whose operations extended beyond a widowed country. IKEA, however, had repeatedly bucked market trends and industry norms.

Over three and a half decades it had built a highly profitable general network of furniture stores. (See Exhibit 1.) Company Origins No IKEA is an acronym for the initials of the founder, Ingvar Kamprad, his provoke Elmtaryd, and his county, Agunnaryd, in Småland, South Sweden. In 1943, at the age of 17, Kamprad began hi! s entrepreneurial career by selling fish, Christmas magazines, and seeds. Within a few years he had established a mail-order calling featuring products as diverse as ballpoint pens and furniture. It was in furniture, however, that he dictum the greatest opportunity. Do Even as the pent-up wartime demand found expression in the post-war boom, the traditional Swedish practice of handing down custom-made...If you compulsion to get a rich essay, order it on our website: OrderCustomPaper.com

If you want to get a full essay, visit our page: write my paper