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International Strategic Marketing Management
Success Factors of IKEA
IKEA is one of the most successful furniture retailer’s worldwide. The factors that contributed to this success and distinguished IKEA from its competitors will be monitored in the following analysis.
First, IKEA has found “niche” to serve. The fact that they are producing “Scandinavian style” products makes them unique. Their idea of offering a very broad range of products, with limited style variations, the bold colors and the typical Scandinavian names, has created a very strong brand image and also a high recognition value of its products. Also, their slogan “Design with meaning” distuingishes them from their competitors. IKEA offers stylish furniture at low prices. Usually you either have the choice between low price and low degree of stylishness or both up high. IKEA has found its place “in between”, where it has been working efficiently for decades. By designing and building their products “themselves”-by choosing the most efficient designers and producers etc out of a “pool”-, they have set the basis for a very efficient pricing strategy, which helps them to keep prices down low, and for a unique style.
Second, IKEA has set up a very unique concept that perfectly fits its mantra. In order to save costs, they are pursuing a strategy of self service. The customers chose their products themselves, get them from the warehouse, transport them home and assemble them. This helps them to save costs. IKEA has, for instance, implemented flat packages for their products. With this packaging method they can save transport costs, since they save space and IKEA can thus ship more products at once. Furthermore it supports the idea of customer self service, since you can easily transport the flat packages in your car, to carry the products home. Moreover, IKEA is constantly redesigning its products, which helps them to save money and thus keep prices stable or even lower