The ENTIRE History of IKEA in 18 Minutes

The history of IKEA, from a farm boy selling matches in 1930s Sweden to the biggest furniture seller on the planet: how Ingvar Kamprad built IKEA on flat packs, a boycott that backfired, a store so crowded customers were sent into the warehouse, and a bargain you agreed to without noticing — they do the cheap part, you do the last mile. This IKEA documentary covers Ingvar Kamprad, Gillis Lundgren and the first flat-pack table, the Stockholm round store, BILLY, the IKEA effect, the foundation structure, the 1994 scandal, America, the meatballs, the catalog, and IKEA right now in October 2026. In its last full financial year IKEA sold about 44.6 billion euros of goods and welcomed around 915 million store visits. In September 2026 it announced a 1.2 billion euro price cut in Europe, and this month it is opening in Tulsa, closing small city stores and buying back used furniture. Chapters 0:00 Intro: the maze 2:29 1926: a farm in Småland 3:47 1943: four letters 4:49 The boycott 5:43 1956: the table without legs 7:01 1965: the round store in Stockholm 8:25 The secret: the last mile 9:36 The frugal billionaire 11:14 1985: America pushes back 11:48 The foundation and the scandal 12:51 From here, the years move fast 14:58 Right now 16:35 Why it matters 17:25 Back to the maze Sources Inter IKEA Group — IKEA year in review FY25 (inter.ikea.com) Ingka Group newsroom — FY25 results; "IKEA makes a major investment in affordability" (1 Sep 2026); second-hand marketplace launches (Oct 2026) IKEA U.S. newsroom — IKEA Tulsa grand opening (23 Oct 2026); US small-format store changes Norton, Mochon & Ariely (2011), "The IKEA effect: When labor leads to love", Journal of Consumer Psychology Ingvar Kamprad, "The Testament of a Furniture Dealer" (1976) U.S. CPSC — 2016 IKEA chest and dresser recall; 2020 settlement reporting Greens/EFA report on IKEA tax structure (2016) Illustrations and narration are AI-generated. Every giant started on the ground floor. #IKEA #CompanyHistory #BusinessHistory