Understanding IKEA Technology
IKEA is known to its customers as a fantastic
home and office furniture retailer present in over 30 countries with
more than 260 retail stores available around the world. As the
company continues to grow, people are beginning to wonder about the
method behind their madness: what makes them tick? A large
contributor to their success falls behind their impressive forms of
technology used to accommodate the changing economies of the world.
By adapting to their surroundings they have managed to becoming
forerunners in technological advancements that many other retailers
adopt over time. By coming to understand the many facets of IKEA
technology, many companies have found their own success. So to help
you understand more, we will explore the nature of the company and
their various forms of technology used to make them the success they
are today.
IKEA’s History
The history of IKEA finds its roots in the
founder of the company, Ingvar Kamprad. As a solo retailer of
various small items, including watches, picture frames, and other
items, he found enough success to broaden his scopes and eventually
included furniture in his products. By the middle of the 20th
century, Kamprad was already successful in his home land of Sweden,
and by the 1960s he was expanding his business to new cities, and
even countries, to create what we know today as IKEA.
But this company is more than just a great
furniture store; it is an experience. Because in their stores, you
don’t just find a warehouse-sized building with thousands of great
items for sale; in many stores you can also find a great restaurant,
café, bistro, food market, child’s play area, van rental service,
furniture consultant, and so much more. So how did this once small
company, started by one man, evolve into the giant that it is today?
The company has managed to stay ahead of the game technologically,
and by doing this, it has grown into a business to be reckoned with.
IKEA Technology
There are several ways that IKEA utilizes
technology to enhance their business, but the three ways I will
focus on are their distribution networks, virtual storage solutions,
and green technology, for they stand as a part of the centerpiece of
the company’s success.
Global Distribution Network
IKEA’s Global Distribution Network is a system
set up by the company to insure that all products are delivered to
retail stores in a perfect time-effective manner. They believe that
it is important to keep up with the latest trends and designs, and
also understand that by not delivering the products in a timely
fashion, the latest trends and designs can quickly become “so last
week.” To avoid this from happening they’ve created a form of IKEA
technology that utilizes control points through the distribution
cycle – this way they know where every item is going and exactly
when it will get there – and this includes any location in their
landscape of distribution.
Some of their smaller stores range in size from
20,000 to 30,000 square feet, while their larger stores, like their
Stockholm, Sweden location, have over 500,000 square feet of space
to fill. This means they need products to be shipped out to their
stores around the clock. To accommodate this need, the company has
over 1,800 suppliers located in 50 different nations that supply a
variety of mix and match styles to countries, something that keeps
the customers guessing. In keeping their stores fully stocking, in
addition to supplying unique, contemporary styles to varying
countries (i.e. sending American styles to Europe), IKEA gets to
overwhelm customers with a wide range of eccentric products that
will keep them wanting to come back for more.
DataCore Virtual Storage Solutions
As a part of their information technology
movement, IKEA has moved forward with DataCore Virtual Storage
Solutions. As a part of the new IKEA technology system, DataCore
helps them set up systems for storage at their various branches and
inventory stocking locations around the world. By using this storage
solution, the company is able to utilize disk servers that can be
supported from one central location, which for them happens to be in
Germany. By being able to store all of their information in one
location, the company is allowed uniformity among the over 260
stores they must manage everyday. They can keep track of many
critical business applications, including warehousing, which is
huge. And it allows the stores – and even customers – to keep track
of what items are at what stores with the click of a mouse.
If you have ever visited their website, you
will gain an understanding of how this IKEA technology has benefited
customers in particular. If you browse their selection of products
via their online store, and find that an item is not available for
purchase through their website, you can easily utilizing their
product search function that helps you locate a store in your area
that does have the product in its inventory – very convenient and
smart for this company that believes in evolving with its customers’
needs.
Green Technology
Another variant of IKEA technology is their
work to keep the world “green.” In the past year, the company has
worked to encourage its customers to recycle by doing away with
“throw-away” plastic bags and instead asking them to embrace
reusable bags. As an added incentive to stay away from the plastic
bags, the company began charging its customers a price for the bags
– those who wanted to pay the price in the United States stores were
informed that their funds were to be donated to the American
Forests. By becoming a leader for those wanting to preserve the
environment, they are sure to become an even more incredible force
to be reckoned with.
IKEA technology has been at the forefront of
the company’s immense success. And with more ideas churning from
their wheels everyday, it is possible that customers will bear
witness to the results of even more impressive IKEA technology in
the future. Only time will tell what we will see next. But in the
meantime, anticipating next great idea is pretty exciting.
IKEA Information
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