Swedish furniture company founded in 1943. It has over 480 shops in 63 countries and generated around €45bn ($52bn) in sales in 2024. IKEA has brought Swedish minimalism to the masses, usually in the form of white or beige medium-density fibreboard. It is synonymous with practicality, affordability and flat-pack furniture.
Fabrics were not a priority in the firm's early years. By the mid-1960s IKEA brought in a new generation of predominantly young female textile artists—including Bitten Hojmark, Inger Nilsson and Vivianne Sjolin—to create a distinct look. The result was a playful explosion of colour, print and technical innovation that coincided with the firm's rapid expansion. By 1970 textiles accounted for about a quarter of sales.
In 1971 Inez Svensson designed the striped "Strix" and "Strax" fabrics, which marked the first time horizontal stripes had been printed onto fabric (previously stripes had to be woven in, making them more expensive). IKEA also collaborated with Marimekko, a Finnish textile company, and Zandra Rhodes, the British fashion designer. Ms Sjolin, who ran the textile department in the 1970s and 1980s, used striking new designs as a marketing tool to attract press attention and adorn catalogue covers.
The IKEA Museum, at Almhult in Sweden, holds the firm's textile collection.
Mundus vult decipi decipiatur ergo.